


My Big Brother

by JoongieMuffin



Category: ATEEZ (Band)
Genre: ADHD, Adorable Hongjoong, Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, As well as show the reality of how people like this are treated in real life, Bullies, But at least he has his brother, Child Abuse, Disability, Drama, Fluff, Gen, HE IS AN ANGEL, Love, M/M, More like educate people, Slow Updates, This is not meant to give off a bad message, Yeosang and Hongjoong are brothers, Yeosang has a bad life, Yeosang isn't the bad guy, alcoholic father, baby Hongjoong, dont read it, he struggles too, hongjoong is a baby, if you're not comfortable with it, intelligence disability, jongsang, or - Freeform, other relationships will be added later - Freeform, seongsang, who will win?, yeosang is trying his best
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-11
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:34:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 28
Words: 37,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26405050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JoongieMuffin/pseuds/JoongieMuffin
Summary: *𝓜𝔂 𝓑𝓲𝓰 𝓑𝓻𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻*Yeosang had a pretty bad life. His mother passed away when he was still young, his father was practically non-existent in his life. When he was home, he was a dangerous alcoholic.Plus, school was pretty shit.The only good thing for him was his big brother, Hongjoong. However, the elder had what's called an intelligence disorder. Meaning Yeosang is his full time carer.Follow the two as they make it through high school, staying together through thick and thin with their best friends by their side.__________~𝓢𝓵𝓸𝔀 𝓾𝓹𝓭𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓼~𝓞𝓷 𝓰𝓸𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓢𝓽𝓪𝓻𝓽𝓮𝓭 - 11/09/2020𝓔𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓭 - 12/02/21**Also posted on Wattpad under the same username**
Relationships: Choi San/Jung Wooyoung, Jeong Yunho/Song Mingi, Kang Yeosang & Kim Hongjoong, Kang Yeosang/Park Seonghwa
Comments: 94
Kudos: 135





	1. Chapter 1

Non!Idol verse

Note- Hongjoong has an intelligence disorder in this. If you are not familiar with it, it's basically where a person needs constant care as if they were a child as they cannot do even the basics themselves. Feel free to give it a quick search, if not, just read. Plus I am not a professional in this. I'm taking all the information from what I have read and my own understanding as I used to do childcare.

**𝐊𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐘𝐞𝐨𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐠**

Age - 17.

He's in school and works a couple of jobs to support him and his older brother. He would do absolutely anything for his hyung. But in school, he doesn't like people knowing they are related.

**𝐊𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐇𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐣𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐠**

Age - 18

Also in school, just in the other half for those with special educational needs. He has what is called an intelligence disorder. An absolute sweetheart who tries his best. Also doesn't realize he's different from others however.

**𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐨**

Age - 17

One of Yeosangs friends. He also has a huge crush on the boy and follows him around like a lost puppy.

**𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐨𝐨𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠**

Age - 17

Wooyoung is one of Hongjoongs friends who is also in the same class as Hongjoong. He has bad ADHD to the point where he became too much of a distraction in class, so they moved him to one that would suit his specific needs.

**𝐒𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐢**

Age - 17

The schools bad boy and bully. Doesn't like many people besides Yunho, his boyfriend, and his friends. He used to have his own 'gang' he hung around with, until he became their target due to being homosexual. But he landed them in hospital and found friends in the 'losers'. Doesn't take well to Hongjoong and Wooyoung at first. (Has tattoos and piercings)

** 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐒𝐚𝐧 **

Age - 18

Choi Jonghos older brother. Except he got held back a year, landing him in the same classes as the younger. San was also a part of Mingis' old 'clique' but followed him to the new group of friends they have. (Has tattoos and piercings)

**𝐉𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐘𝐮𝐧𝐡𝐨**

Age - 17

An absolute sweetheart. This boy has a heart of gold despite being in a serious relationship with the schools bad boy. He hates when he sees anyone in pain and is rather motherly towards Hongjoong and Wooyoung.

** 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐒𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐰𝐚 **

Age - 18

The eldest of the lot. Friends with them and was also originally in Mingis group of friends. But followed the boy anyway. He was rather mysterious and had bad habits of sleeping around, smoking and partying. This behaviour encourages some of the others to copy him. Also in the same year as the others. Kind of a dick. No, he's a dick. (Has tattoos and piercings)


	2. 𝓞𝓷𝓮

"No, no, no!"

  
"Come on Joongie, bath time" Yeosang spoke carefully, to ease the boy into the tub filled with warm bubbly water. 

  
The boy in question was currently sat next to Yeosang, legs and arms crossed as he refused. 'No' was actually one of his favourite words recently. Due to him being unable to communicate properly, Yeosang had been slowly encouraging him to speak. Introducing a new word to him every week and then repeating them a couple of months later. 

  
The boy had a lot of responsibility taking care of him. However, he was more than okay with the prospect of taking care of him and teaching him. Even if it left him tired due to his busy life. 

  
"No!" He wanted to get in the bath because he hated being dirty. Being clean felt much better. But this time, he wanted to do it by himself, however, was unable to convey his feelings to his younger brother. 

  
Yeosang sighed as he lowered his hands onto his legs where he was kneeled down. "Hongjoong please, I need to go to work early tomorrow. Come on" He pleaded. "You've never had an aversion to bath time before. Why now?"

  
"No...Joongie...Sangie...no" The boy struggled. He looked close to tears as he couldn't get out what he wanted to say. After he calmed down, he began tugging at his clothes, attempting to get them off. 

  
He wanted to bath by himself, but he also didn't want to see his brother upset. Seeing Yeosangs' handsome face envelop in exhaustion, he changed his mind.  
Yeosang saw what he was doing and a wide smile stretched over his face. "Thank you hyung" He quickly put his larger hands over his brothers much smaller ones and began helping, not taking over fully, instead he was guiding almost.

  
"Yeo-yeo" Hongjoong muttered as he watched his brothers hands. "Come on Joongie, good boy" The boy beamed at this, loving being told he was good. Yeosang quickly took over the undressing once the boy got distracted before placing him in the bath tub. It took 5 minuets to scrub him clean once he placed some toys in there as well. 

  
Hongjoong squealed as he played with the plastic, squeezy minions that Yunho had brought him. He absolutely loved them. "So, Joongie hyung, as I said, I have to go to work tomorrow okay? Then it's school. So I need you to be on your best behaviour for me" 

  
The two were still in school as well as all their friends. And no, they didn't live alone. Their father also lived with them, but he was absent most of the time or drunk, so it basically was only the two brothers. Their mother had passed away 10 years ago, when Yeosang was 7 and when Hongjoong was 8. She died in a car accident which caused their father to become a workaholic. When he wasn't working, he was drinking. And that was dangerous to be around. 

  
Yeosang squirted a small amount of shampoo on his hands and began scrubbing at the boys scalp, causing the older to whine and squirm at the sensation. "I know hyung. Shh, calm down" Yeosang softly spoke as he rinsed the bubbled out. 

  
The house they lived in was small and rather dirty. But with their father slacking off, they were unable to have a lot of luxuries. Meaning they had to use everything sparingly. The two boys shared the biggest room in the house. And that too was small. It barely fit two beds in it, let alone Hongjoongs toys that he had saved from when he was younger. But they made do with what they had. 

  
Once the boy was clean, Yeosang reached down underneath his armpits and lifted him out. That was another thing about his older brother. Whilst Yeosang himself was at a comfortable 5"10' but was on the skinny side, Hongjoong had only grown to be 5"2'. So he was incredibly easy to lift up, making Yeosangs life much easier. 

  
"Come on, let's get you dressed" Yeosang hummed as he wrapped the boy up in a crusty towel and carried him to their shared room. Due to it being so small, the two had to share what they had. Even though they barely had any clothes to begin with.

  
Yeosang set his sleepy brother down and trapesed off to find something comfortable for the boy to sleep in. Preferably to keep him warm as he didn't want him sneaking into his bed tonight. He quickly came across the boys favourite pair of pyjamas; ones with little fish characters littered on them. Their mother had brought them, expecting Hongjoong to grow into them when she was still with them. But it was only 3 years ago that he did. He was rather small. 

  
Yeosang quickly got to work in dressing him, making sure he wouldn't be able to slip out of them in the night. He quickly tucked the boy into his bed and got himself ready, laying down and falling into a deep slumber, hoping tomorrow wouldn't be too bad. 


	3. 𝓣𝔀𝓸

**buzz...buzz...buzz**

  
Yeosang groaned as his hand flopped out lazily to switch the alarm he had set, off. He patted the bedside table situated next to him until his hand hit the old, rusty alarm clock, switching it off. Once the noise was gone, he slipped his arm back under the covers and snugged back down again.

  
"Shit!"

  
He shot up, eyes wide but riddled with sleep as he rushed out of his bed, quickly pulling on his work clothes. "Hongjoongie-hyung! Wake up, we're going to work!" He shouted from where he was in the bathroom, brushing his teeth. 

  
Once he got no reply, he poked his small head around the door frame to check on his brother. "Hongjoong?" He questioned. Still no reply.

  
Yeosang rushed over to the elders bed to see if he was asleep still, only to panic once he realised he wasn't there. 

  
"Fuck" He whispered as he went to spit out the tooth paste in the bathroom and darting downstairs to find his misplaced brother. First he looked in the kitchen. The other was frequently in there, removing the pans from the cupboards and sliding his small body in them for some reason. "Joongie? Where'd you go?" If this little game of hide and seek continued, then he was going to be late for work, and depending on who was in today, it was either going to be not so bad or really bad. 

  
"Shit" A squeaky voice rattled out from the lounge. Yeosang paused as he realised that he had been cursing a lot, not remembering the boy picks up words that he hears. Making a mad dash to the lounge, he shouted. "No Hongjoong, we do not swear or it'll be a time out" The older looked up at his brother as he made his way around the room, glancing at all the pictures that were hung up.

  
Yeosang sighed as he realised what he said went in through one ear and out the other. "Okay Hongjoong, you stay here and I'll be right back okay?" Yeosang was tired already and it had only been 15 minuets since he had woken up. Without waiting for a reply, he ran back up the creaky stairs and into their room, picking out and outfit for him and his brother, quickly getting dressed himself. Instead of brushing his fluffy brown hair, he just fluffed it up further with his hand. The old women at the café found it endearing, so why not just leave it?

  
Not even 5 minuets later, he was racing down the stairs and wrestling some clothes onto his small brothers body and grabbed his phone, making sure it was fully charged before grabbing both of their school bags as well as Hongjoongs hand. Together they made their way out of the dirty house and was on the way to work. 

  
The walk was never too long as it was quite early. 5:00 AM to be exact. School starts at 9, so they had plenty of time to open the café and serve the early bird customers. Thankfully the café was only a 10 minuet walk, then a further 8 to school from there. 

  
Hongjoong obviously didn't work, Yeosang only deposited the shorter into a chair near the till and gave him paper and crayons to keep him distracted. Usually it worked, but sometimes it didn't. 

  
"Morning Mrs. Woo" Yeosang respectfully bowed to the owner once he walked through the door, pulling along his smiling brother. 

  
"Good morning dear, and good morning to you Hongjoong sweetie" She replied back. Mrs. Woo was the main owner, but her husband sometimes ran the place in her absence. She was much nicer than him and actually liked having the two brothers there. Today was Friday, meaning it was her day to be in.

  
Yeosang nudged Hongjoong when he didn't answer. "Hyung, say 'good morning' please" The blond haired boy turned to his brother and looked up to meet his eyes. "Morin" He said to his brother, causing Yeosang to huff. 

  
Mrs. Woo only chuckled in amusement, not at all offended as she knew the boy and his situation. "Hey Hongjoong, would you like a nice cookie?" She questioned, trying to get the boy off of Yeosang who needed to work. Hongjoongs head shot up at the offer of a cookie, and looked at the woman with pleading eyes. "What do we say then honey?"

  
"peas?"

  
The old woman quickly gave in when she saw the expression, settling the boy in his usual area and brining over a chocolate chip cookie for him to munch on. This gave Yeosang the opportunity to get to work, setting up all the tables and sorting out the coffee machines. One day, he promises that he would get him and Hongjoong out of the shit hole they live in now and give him a comfortable life. That's why he works so much. 

  
Yeosang continued pottering about as he kept a watchful eye on his brother, luckily Mrs. Woo had decided to sit next him and, at least try to engage in some kind of conversation with the boy. He smiled as he saw the overly animated expressions the dear old lady was using whilst sipping her coffee and chatting. 

  
The bell on top of the door broke him out of his trance. Looking up he saw it was one of his best friends, Jeong Yunho. 

  
"Hey man" Yeosang beamed up, happy to see him. 

  
"Hey Yeosang" Yunho gave a puppy smile, the two quickly falling into quiet chatter. The next thing Yunho knew, his large frame was being attacked. Small shouts began to echo around the almost empty café. 

  
"Yun, Yun, Yun!" Small arms were wrapped around his waist and a face was harshly shoved up against his back. Yunho decided to play. 

  
With a smile, he said. "Hmm, who's that I wonder?" Tapping his chin in thought. Giggles were heard behind him as Yeosang watched on fondly. He was relieved that at least one of his friends were willing to help out. 

  
Last year, Yeosang had done all of the caretaking for his brother and none of his friends had actually known about Hongjoong. He made sure not to talk about him or to him at school, only taking care of him at home. Yeosang even went to school earlier than most to quickly drop his brother off so no one would know.   
That worked until Yeosang had worked himself thin and had passed out whilst picking his brother up from school, standing and waiting for him to come out. Hongjoong had seen his brother fall and ran up to him, shaking his thin form to wake him up. When he didn't awaken, he walked away.

  
Yunho and Mingi were the ones that found him. Yunho had been concerned for his closest friend since the day started. He had been swaying constantly, eyes fluttering. So, he followed, dragging Mingi along as well. That was when he saw him on the floor, passed out. He and Mingi picked him up and took him to their car, where he woke up in a panic, calling out for his brother. 

  
Which was how the rest of them found out. Some were willing to help whist some still thought the older boy was weird. 

  
Yeosang shook his head, getting rid of the negative thoughts of the past, when things were harder than they are now. He paid attention to the two in front of him. Somehow Hongjoong was trying to climb up Yunhos tall and built frame. He quickly shot his hands out.

  
"No hyung. We don't do that to people" He stammered out, hands grasping onto his brothers arms, untangling them from the grip they had around his friend, face reddening in embarrassment. 

  
"Yeosang-ah, it's fine" Yunho quickly reassured, not having a problem with the tiny, older boy playing around. "Anyway, your shifts over now" Hongjoong let go after being pried off and wandered over to the seat he was at, grabbing his picture, Yunho following to collect the boys colouring pencils being used to this routine already. 

  
_Damn, 3 and a half hours go by fast when you are up in your head._

  
Removing his apron and hanging it up, he quickly bid the old woman a goodbye and grabbed his brothers hand, walking to Yunhos car, ready to go to school. 


	4. 𝓣𝓱𝓻𝓮𝓮

The three quickly made their way over to the fancy car that would soon hold their other friends in when they go to pick them up. Yeosang got in the back with Hongjoong, sitting the older in the middle due to his petite frame, strapping him in before making sure he himself was safely strapped in. 

"Ready?" Yunho called from the front seat, glancing back at them through the mirror.

"Yup" Yeosang said through a yawn. "Hey dude, what time did you get to the café this morning?" He questioned as Yunho pulled away, on the way to his boyfriends to pick him and Seonghwa up. 

"Only 8 Sang-ah, don't worry. It should be you that you worry about" He muttered the last part underneath his breath, making sure he didn't hear it. 

To Yeosangs left, his brother began tugging his on his arm. "Sang, Sang, Sang" He began chanting. "Shh hyung, please" Yeosang begged, prying the small hands off of him. He wasn't embarrassed because it was only in front of Yunho. But if he let the boy do this in private, then he would surely do it in public and cause a whole lot of attention to be drawn to them. 

"No" The other stubbornly giggled. Yeosang sighed, this was going to be a long day. 

"What do you need hyung?" Yunho asked from the front, eyes never leaving the road ahead of him. He had a soft smile on his face, one that never seemed to leave unless he was crying. The tall boy really was just a ball of fluff. 

"Bag, bag, bag!" Hongjoong chanted, looking out of the window. Yeosang reached down by the boys feet and pulled up the blue butterfly bag that was the olders. "Here we go hyung" He said as they pulled up by MIngis huge house. Hongjoong turned and grabbed the bag, pulling out one of his stuffies. It was a bear, small in size. But was well loved. Their grandmother had gifted it to him when he was born. One of the eyes were missing, an ear was chewed off and it looked rather tatty. 

Yeosang yet again sighed as he brought it out. That was something he was embarrassed about. His brother and him having old things that were dirty and broken. It wasn't too bad when it was only Yunho, Jongho and himself. But with the schools most popular 'bad boys' now being in their friend circle, it was embarrassing. Especially when they were all so rich. 

"Hyung, put that thing away" He ordered as the doors opened, signalling Mingi and Seonghwas' arrival to the car. A deep chuckled sounded around the car. "Let the freak keep it out" Seonghwa said, voice dripping with such arrogance that it made Yeosang want to smash his face in. 

The elder was dressed in a black turtle neck with a matching black blazer, looking every bit rich. "Seonghwa hyung" Mingi muttered in warning from the front. He reminded him to be nice because he didn't want Yunho to whoop his ass later. Seonghwa huffed as he turned to face the window, watching the trees and houses go past. 

"Min, Hwa, car" Hongjoong spoke out with his broken sentences. A smile on his grubby face. Yeosang quickly pulled his head to face him and wiped his mouth with a tissue he always kept in his pocket, muttering in displeasure. "Hyung" 

Not even 5 minuets later did they arrive at school. They all piled out of the car, Seonghwa walking off somewhere else, probably off to find which ever loose girl he spent the night with last night. The rest wandered over to the department in the school where Hongjoongs class was. Yeosang and Hongjoong walked hand in hand. The smaller skipping along, mumbling along to some nursery rhyme he must have learnt this week.

Mingi and Yunho also walking hand in hand, trailing a couple of steps behind them. They quickly walked together to the classroom that Hongjoong stayed in. "Okay Joongie hyung. Sangie has to go now okay? Be a good boy and do as the teachers say and play nicely with Woo okay?" Yeosang leaned down to his brothers height and slowly spoke. Making sure the older could understand. 

Luckily, he seemed to have as he nodded his head and pulled away, grabbing his bag and running to Wooyoung, his friend. "Buh-bye Sangie!" He shouted with his signature wave; thumb tucked away into the palm of his small hand. "Woo, Woo, Woo!" The boy chanted as he was close to his friend, running into the awaiting arms and pecking his cheek. 

Yeosang smiled and turned, lowering his head as he caught Mingis' eyes watching him. "Lets go" He muttered, leading the two tall love birds to their shared class. Quickly making his way to the room and finding his seat next to the lovesick puppy, Jongho. 

"Hey Sang-ah" Jongho whispered dreamily. "Hey kid" Yeosang chuckled and ruffled his hair, causing the raven haired boy to pout. "Hyung!" He whined out, stopping when their half asleep teacher made his way into the class of rowdy, shouting teens. 

"And hush!" He commanded. He was a nice teacher, one that everyone got along with. His name was Mr. Kim and he was rather tall. Not as tall as the two bean stalks in their group. But tall enough. All the girls were absolutely infatuated with him. His big eyes and boxy smile. 

Everyone turned their attention to him when he said that, slowly slipping into their chairs and getting ready for the lesson they were going to be put through today on a Friday morning. Sometimes he let them chill, relax and do homework. Other times he actually planned out a lesson. It just depended on his mood. 

"Okay, get out any homework you have that is due in today whilst I sleep" He stated, head slumping down on his desk at the front, promptly falling asleep. Everyone took this as a chance to get up and chat, Yeosangs friend group was no different. 

"Okay whores, who wants to go bowling after school?" San yelled. 

He got a chorus of 'yes's until his eyes landed on Yeosang. The boy stuttered, blush spreading over his handsome face. "Urm, I have hyung..." He trailed off. Everyone sighed, disappointed. Once again, he would be missing out. 

"Why don't you just bring the freak with you?" Seonghwa muttered with a smirk gracing his features, flinching when he received a strong kick from Jongho. Yeosang thought about it. 

' _hyung hasn't actually been out since mum passed. Perhaps...? No, absolutely not. He'll just bring trouble with him'_

He had his mind made up, but one look at the youngest in the groups puppy eyes, he caved. 

_This is going to be fun._ He thought sarcastically. 


	5. 𝓕𝓸𝓾𝓻

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates are going to be slower as I start a new course at college. Don't forget to leave some comments on how you think this story is going so far, I'd really appreciate it!  
> Thanks for reading!

Throughout the day, Yeosang and his friends were breezing through their lessons. Not in the academic way. In the way that they were all messing around, causing the first half of the day to pass quickly. It was lunch time before they knew it. 

As the bell ran to signify it's lunch, children came rushing out of their classrooms, pushing and shoving to get in the queue for lunch first. However, the fact that they had the three 'scariest' boys in the school by their side meant that they got away with pushing in. Even if Yunho does throw a hissy fit about being rude to the younger students who have waited in line. 

"Uh, stop. The bell doesn't dismiss you, I do" Everyone let out groans as they sat back down. 

"What a bitch" San muttered under his breath as he dropped his bag angrily. 

They had Mrs. Oh. She was rather strict in the way she taught and expected her students to obey her every rule. 

"Hyung, Shut up" Jongho whispered and nudged his brother in the ribs, wanting to go and get lunch. He gave the old witch a gummy smile, trying to make her fall for his charms. San huffed as he turned away, disgusted by his younger brothers display of cuteness.

"Okay, you can go" She dismissed. The group of hungry boys quickly shoved past their classmates and speed-walked to the lunch hall. "Yo, Sangie. Isn't your brother joining us for lunch? As well as his friend. What was it? Woojung? Woomyung?" San questioned, throwing his arm over Yeosangs bony shoulders.

"Yeah, and his name is Wooyoung" Yeosang sighed back, mentally preparing himself for spending time with his brother. Don't get him wrong, he loves his older brother more than anything. But dealing with his behaviour in front of the whole school? Yeah, Yeosang could do without that. He didn't want more people calling his hyung a 'freak'. 

The 6 boys quickly found their usual table and sat down. It was a typical round table. But it was at the back and no one dared to sit there. 

Mingi, San and Seonghwa went up to get the food for themselves and the others, leaving Yeosang, Yunho and Jongho at the table. They fell into chatter as the hall began to fill up with students. 

"Yeosang-ah, do you want some?" Jongho offered some chocolate he had been munching throughout the day. "No thanks" He refused. 

"Jongho-ah, you shouldn't eat that. It's unhealthy" Yunho muttered in distaste. He liked chocolate, but no heaps of it like the younger did. Jongho just huffed and turned, spotting Hongjoongs class walk in. "Yeosang-hyung, there's hyung!"

He pointed over to where the two friends were standing, holding hands to make sure they stayed together. Yeosang sighed, looking down. But it was Wooyoung who spotted him before he did so. 

"Yeosangie!" The boy screeched out, causing many heads to turn in the direction of the noise, then in the direction of the named person. 

Great.

Just what he didn't want. 

Luckily, Yunho seemed to see the brunettes discomfort and stood up, walking over to the two. "Hey hyung, hey Wooyoung, are you two joining us today?" The two in question looked up at the tall boy and smiled. "Yes, yes, yes!" Hongjoong said, bouncing slightly where he stood. 

Yunho shared a look with the teacher and she said that the two can go. So Yunho led them to the table, ignoring all the eyes on them. 

"Sangie" Hongjoong muttered out, smile now gone as he wrapped his arms around his brother, who was still sitting down. He felt the people he didn't know watch him walk. Quite frankly, it left him feeling a little unsettled and wanting comfort from his brother, who didn't seem to return it.

"Sit down hyung, come on" Yeosang said, keeping his face blank as he tried to shake the small arms off of him. There wasn't a free space next to Yeosang, only on the end of the table, so the small boy detached his limbs from his brothers frame and dragged his feet over to the chair, lazily sitting down. 

Wooyoung seemed to be deep in conversation with Yunho. Well as much of a conversation as you can have with someone who didn't let you cut in to answer. 

"Joong good boy?" Hongjoong asked. No one answered as they carried on talking, so he grabbed his small lunch box and quietly got up and began walking away. His small feet not making any noise as he walked further from the lunch hall, walking around the school. 

He quickly found an empty spot on the hall floor and settled down, happily opening his lunch and began munching on his out-of-date sandwich. 

Back in the hall, the other three had made their way back to the table with food in their arms. They quickly dished it all out and began eating, Mingi with his arm wrapped around Yunhos waste and San suddenly taking an interest in the newest addition to their table, finding his ramblings utterly adorable. 

Jongho saw this and nudged Yeosang. "Sang, Sannie-hyung seems to have taken a liking to Woo, huh?" He chuckled out. Yeosang laughing quietly as he watched. He glanced around the table, feeling as if something was missing. 

"Yeosang, where's the freak huh? Did he not want to join us?" Seonghwa taunted. But there was an underlying hint of concern in his voice. Wooyoung paused his conversation, ready to defend his hyung against this toothless looking meanie when Yeosang stumbled out of his chair, nearly tripping over. 

"Where are you going?" Yunho asked, already getting up. 

"Hyung" Is all Yeosang said as he ran out of the hall in search for his brother. Yunho close behind. 

Hongjoong didn't actually get too far from the hall. So it didn't take that long for them to find him. He was sitting on the dirty, dusty floor hunched over his lunch box, quietly talking to himself. Students who walked past gave him dirty looks, but he was too far in his own world to notice. 

He only looked up when he felt strong arms wrap around him. Glancing at the person, he found it was his brother. "Hyung, don't ever do that again" Yeosang said with a shaky exhale. Hongjoong just shoved the last part of his sandwich in his mouth and smiled, forgetting what happened earlier. 

"Hey buddy, if we're in the hall, you'll have to stay with one of us okay? Otherwise you wouldn't be allowed to visit us here again" Yunho said carefully, not wanting to worry the older. Also in a way he would understand best. 

"Stay" Hongjoong said, face scrunched up. They didn't quite know what he was talking about, so they just left it, taking both of his hands in their and guiding him to the hall instead. 

The three made their way back to the hall full of noisy teenagers and quickly made their way to the table, Yunho made sure to move up a space so Hongjoong could sit with his brother.

"Yay! Hyung's back!" Wooyoung cheered, San chuckling at his antics. 

"Back!" The boy repeated, smiling as he cuddled into his brothers side.

"So, anyway, we all down for after school?" Mingi questioned. 

"Can Wooyoung come?" San asked, wrapping an arm around the boy. 

"I guess, he's our friend as well now, right?" Jongho questioned, fists clenched on the table as if daring anyone to object. No one did. Thankfully. 

"We go?" Hongjoong asked Yeosang. "Yeah, we're gonna go bowling hyung. I know you've been wanting to go for a long while now" Yeosang chuckled as he looked down at the face beaming up at him. 

"I've got to ask momma first!" Wooyoung screeched, pulling out his phone and sending a text message to his mum. 

"Okay Wooyoungie" San said, already completely smitten with the other. 

"Okay, so it's done. We'll all meet up by my car after school then, okay?" Yunho questioned. Everyone nodded their head in affirmative. Just before the bell rang for the end of lunch, Wooyoung shouted, "I can go!" Some cheered, some groaned. But stopped when they saw the look on the Choi brothers faces. 

-

Three hours later and school was finished. Yeosang was on his way to his brothers class when he got a message from ping through on his phone. 

Dad- Hi Yeo, I'm home today. So make sure there's plenty of beer in the fridge and that retard of a bother of yours is out of my sight. Got it?

Yeosang tensed up as he read it, still making his way to his brothers class whilst not looking where he was going. But he made it and shoved his phone in his back pocket when the teacher came up to him, handing him over Hongjoongs bag. 

"Hey Yeosang. Hongjoong had a good day today. But he did have an accident after lunch. So we've put him in some new clothes. But, may I suggest getting some protection for that reason? It would be better for him" She updated. Due to Hongjoongs disability, it did mean that he couldn't do things the average person his age could. Having continence was one of them. He had tried to help the boy, but it all depends on the day with Hongjoong. 

"Yeah, urm. Sure" Yeosang muttered out in a rush to collect his brother. She smiled at the boy and then called Hongjoong over. "Hongjoong sweetie, Sangie is here to pick you up" The teacher was a lovely lady. Very much like Miss. Honey from Matilda. Plus, she absolutely adored Hongjoong, having known him for a long time. 

"Sangie!" Hongjoong shouted as he ran to his brother, arms open. "Bowl, bowl, bowl!" He shouted happily. "Oh yeah. Wooyoung is also coming with us today" Yeosang muttered to the lady, embracing his brother in a hug. "Oh yes, I almost forgot! I'm sorry" She quickly went to gather Wooyoungs belongings as well. 

"Hi Sangie!" Wooyoungs loud voice broke out as he wandered over, grabbing his things from his teacher. "Bye-bye Mrs. Shon!" 

Hongjoong was still hugging his brother tight, wanting to be picked up. "Up, up, up!" 

"No Joong-ah, I have to carry your bag. I cant carry you as well. Come on boys, lets go. Hongjoong, say bye" He quickly said, removing himself from the tight hold and grabbing onto both boys hands. Hongjoong turned back and waved with his spare hand. "Buh-bye!" Miss. Shon waved back. "See you next week darlings!"

The three quickly made their way over to the car park where everyone was already waiting. Wooyoung, seeing San, immediately broke off his hold on Yeosang and went running towards the other. "Wooyoung, be careful!" Yeosang reprimanded. The younger turned to look at him, muttering 'sorry' and turned to chat with San. 

On Yeosangs right side, he had his brother skipping whilst swinging their arms together, not having a care in the world as he sang along to the same nursery rhyme he did this morning. "Right, now that were all here, lets go!" Mingi said as they split up between two cars and was off. 

In Yunhos care was the Kang brothers and Mingi, obviously. In Sans car was Jongho, Wooyoung and Seonghwa. The loud boy was sat at the front, chattering away with San whilst Jongho and Seonghwa pouted in the back. 

"Bowl, bowl, bowl!" Hongjoong chanted again. Mingi smiled as he turned around from his seat in the passenger side. "You ready hyung? It's going to be loads of fun! Then we can even get food! How does a burger sound, huh?" He was growing rather fond of the smaller male over the year. Even though he tries to hid it from his friends in the other car, he couldn't in front of these. 

At the mention of a burger, Yeosangs mouth began to water. He hadn't had one in years as they only brought what they could afford. With a squeal and bouncing from Hongjoong, they drove off towards the bowling alley. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates are going to be slower as I start a new course at college. Don't forget to leave some comments on how you think this story is going so far, I'd really appreciate it!  
> Thanks for reading!


	6. 𝓕𝓲𝓿𝓮

The group of 8 arrived at the place after a 25 minuet drive. Due to where they lived, they had to travel further for places like these. But, as long as there was a driver, they were down for anything that would be a little way away. 

"We're here guys!" Yunho sung as he pulled up, parking his car. Yeosang turned to his brother and began to undo the seatbelt, releasing the boy. Hongjoong, due to his excitement, leapt out of the vehicle as soon as he was free and began running over to the door of the place, ignoring Yeosangs calls. 

His journey was cut short by a hand clasping around his forearm and pulling back. "Bowl, bowl, bowl!" He shouted, pointing a hand out. "I know freak. But if Yeosang says to wait, you wait" Came the voice of the person holding him back. The trapped boy turned around, trying to get out of the grip that began to hurt. "Ouch, ouch, ouch" He said. His breathing began to pick up as the person wouldn't let go, and began trembling in the grip. Unknown images flashing in his mind as if he was having a flashback. 

His head began whipping side to side as his eyes tried to locate his brother, not bothering to look at the person holding him. "SangSangSangSang" He mumbled out. To his luck, Yeosang came running towards him, hands grasping onto his shoulders and pulling the other hold off. "Joongie, Sangie's here. It's okay now" He reassured, pulling the small body close to him and cupping the back of his head. He was so small that he only came up to his younger brothers shoulder, so he quite easily burrowed himself into the warm body. 

A large hand on his shoulder pulled Yeosang away from the negative thoughts that had began to arise in his head as he tightened the grip on his brother. "Yeosangie, is everything okay now?" Yeosang released a breath when he realised it was only Yunho and gave a shaky nod yes. "Mingi spoke to him, it's fine"

No one else knew what the poor brothers went through when their father was back. They haven't even seen the boys living conditions. They were basically strangers to their closest friends. 

At this, Yeosang let go and reached for the small hand instead and turned to look at Seonghwa, glaring at the boys handsome face. He had the decency to look a little guilty, but he just shoved past and went to the door, walking into the lightly lit building. 

Everyone sighed, but followed. Seonghwa had offered to pay for the 2 lanes, so they had no choice but to follow. Hongjoong tugged on Yeosangs hand, seeming to have forgotton about what had just happened. "Bowling, bowly, bowly!" He chanted, giggling. Yunho saw the change in behaviour and dug his fingers into the boys side, tickling him. Hongjoong squirmed as he laughed loudly. 

"Yunho! Let the boy go!" Mingi joked, liking seeing Yunho be this way towards the boy for some reason. He quickly shook his head to get those thoughts out of his head. No, surely Yunho wouldn't want children with him, he thought. They all began to filter in and walk to the reception area to change their shoes. Once they got the right sizes, Yeosang sat Hongjoong down, taking off his small shoes off his even smaller feet and replaced them with the bowling shoes. Hongjoong was distracted by Yeosangs hair, small fingers running through it and fluffing it. More than likely messing it up.

"Sangies hair i' fluffy" He muttered quietly, his whole attention being on his brothers hair. Yeosangs head shot up, making Hongjoong jump back slightly, but a smile took over his face once he saw Yeosang looking at him. "Hyung, did you just?" Yeosang asked, eyes never leaving the smallers' face. 

"Bowl, bowl, bowl!" The older squealed, clapping his hand excitedly. Yeosang sighed. Was he just imagining things? Or did hyung really just manage to say that? It wasn't anything special to most. But it was the most structured sentence Hongjoong had ever spoken. Usually it's a word being repeated three times. 

He quickly set to work on his own shoes and handed them over to the receptionist to store away. Grabbing Hongjoongs hand, he pulled him up and walked over to the other that had already set up and ordered drinks. "Sorry guys" Yeosang mumbled as he took his place. It looked like they were going in teams. Those who travelled in Yunhos car were against those who came in Sans car.

It was game on. 

The 8 boys played for an hour and a half, Yeosang having to go up with his brother at the beginning. After 2 turns, Mingi walked off and came back with a metal thing which was a ramp for the ball to roll down. All Hongjoong had to do was push it. And from Mingi demonstrating how to use it, he managed to understand and had fun as well. 

Sans team won in the end. Meaning Mingis team needed to pay for dinner. Groans were released when they realised they would be paying for Jonghos food. Yeosang began to worry as he reached for his wallet, seeing this weeks pay check in it. Only 50. Damn, he hoped that it would be okay. They all changed into their own shoes and left in the same cars they came in, driving over to the diner. It was around 7 in the afternoon and their father was most likely home, but the boys were having too much fun to care of the potential consequences.

"It was you Mingi, you have a terrible aim!" Yunho shot back to the younger. The two were bickering like a married couple on why they lost. 

"No it was not!" Mingi shot back like a child. 

Yeosang turned to his brother after letting out a laugh at the two. "Hey hyung, are you okay? You're not usually this quiet" He commented. The other was looking out of the window clutching his bag in his arms. His head quickly whips to Yeosang when he hears him call. 

He takes a breath, face scrunched up as he tries to find the right words to use with his limited vocabulary. "...Dumbo?" He questioned his brother. He didn't realise that he was bad at the game as everyone made sure to cheer every time he came back. Even Seonghwa. But when they passed a family, a kid asked their mother why he was acting stupid. But he knew that was a bad word, so he said dumb instead. 

"Of course not hyung. Who said you were dumb. Was it Seonghwa? I swear-" Hongjoong broke off the youngers ramblings. "Wee!" Oh.

"We're nearly there Hongjoongie-hyung. Can you hold it for me?" Yunho chimed from the front, overhearing the conversation. He heard all of it and, if it was Seonghwa doing, then he would chop the boys balls off himself. 

"Hold!" He shouted back, hands coming to clasp around himself like a child would. Yeosang groaned and sat back in his seat, the teachers words from earlier bouncing around in his head. He used to get the boy some of those, but he hadn't been able to afford new ones this week. They used the last one last night, when they are predominantly needed. 

Yunho pressed down on the accelerator a little more, hoping to get there soon. He had taken note of the new trousers the boy was wearing and knew from experience that Yeosang only put one pair of clean ones in his bag. They quickly pulled up to the diner, Yeosang already had his hyung in his lap, ready to make a run for it. Yunho pulled up, not bothering to park, and let Yeosang and Hongjoong out. Once they were gone, he let out a sigh of relief and parked his car. "That was close" Yunho muttered. 

Mingi turned to him, confusion evident on his face. "How would you know?" he questioned, getting out of the car, Yunho following. "After a while of being around him, it becomes easy to see what he needs" Yunho informed, Mingi letting out an 'ahh' of understanding. They waited out in the car park for the others to arrive. Sticking their tongues out at them as they passed. 

San honked his horn when he saw, sticking his middle finger out of the window. The four of them filtered out of the car, making their way over to them. "Where's the freak and his caregiver?" Seonghwa questioned, earning a smack from Wooyoung as he began screeching. 

"They're already in. Lets go" Yunho said, leading them inside. 

Once they were inside, they saw Hongjoong and Yeosang walking out of the bathroom. Yeosang clutching onto Hongjoongs hand as his brother looked up at him and began rambling random words he had remembered. Yeosang flushed as he realised everyone was watching them. 

They quickly found a booth and sat down, ordering burgers, chips and cola. Yunho, who sat beside Yeosang, nudged him and sent him a questioning look. He was probably wondering why Yeosangs hoodie was now around the tiny boys waste. But Yeosang just shook his head, dismissing the concern. 

"Should those two be having soda this late?" Jongho questioned, gesturing to Wooyoung and Hongjoong. "My momma said I can. She said to have fun. Just stay safe. So I can" Wooyoung sassily replied back. Jongho put his hands up in surrender and looked around, eyes falling on the eldest. 

He narrowed his eyes when he saw him staring at Yeosang.

_I like him. Back off._

The food arrived quickly and the boys dug in, filling their faces and stomachs. Giving the two shorties carbonated sugar this time did prove to be a stupid thing to do, as the two teamed up and began speaking loudly and screeching. Nearly getting them kicked out. The clock ticked along as the boys chattered and ate, all worries dissapreaing. It got to 9 when they left the diner. 

"Come on, lets get you home" Yunho said as he saw Yeosang carry his hyung on his hip. The boy had fallen asleep 10 minuets prior. Everyone stood as they bid their goodbyes to each other. Yunhos lot walking over to his car and settled in. Off they went into the darkness of the night,

"Same place as always?" Yunho questioned, already knowing the answer. Yeosang nodded. "Please".

Mingi sighed as he heard this. "You know we wont judge, right hyung?" 

Yeosang just hummed, looking at the small body in his arms. When Hongjoong was like this, he became extremely protective of him. One time, their father was drunk and tried to take a sleeping Hongjoong away from Yeosang, taking him downstairs and out in the back. Yeosang didn't want to begin to think what his father would have done if he didn't knock him out. 

They quickly arrived at the corner that Yeosang always asked to be dropped off at, pulling up. Yeosang opened the door with Hongjoong in his arms and grabbed both of their bags. It was awkward, but he was used to it. "Bye guys. Today was fun...we should do it more" He said. He generally had enjoyed it, more than he thought he would have. 

"Bye Sangie" The two replied and turned off their lights when the boy was half way up the road, making sure they got in safely. When they saw his figure disappear, they quietly drive away, going home.

Yeosang stuck the key into the weathered door, quietly opening it. He toed his shoes off with his hyung still in his arms and closed the door, locking it. 

When he turned back around, he jumped as he saw a face. 

"And where have you been?"


	7. 𝓢𝓲𝔁

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \----Waning, there is abuse in this chapter----

\----Waning, there is abuse in this chapter----

"And where have you been?" The person sneered at him. 

Yeosang gulped, face turning away from the stench of alcohol that blew in his face with every syllable that was said. 

"Father, please. Let me put Hongjoong to bed, then we can talk okay?" In truth, he wanted to walk away, taking his time putting his hyung to bed and hoping to come across his father passed out on the sofa. 

"No" The voice growled out as hand reached out for the small body in his arms, ripping him from his grip. 

"Father - no. Please" He begged when he saw Hongjoong awaken. 

"Dadda!" Hongjoong cheered when he saw his dad. Yeosang cursed. Hongjoong forgets quite easily. All the things that have happened today he's already forgotten and forgiven. Like the lunch incident. 

"You retard!" His father shouted, dropping Hongjoong to the ground. He let out a yelp as he landed. Hongjoong looked up with big eyes. "Retard?" He repeated, confused. 

"Hongjoong, no" Yeosang scolded and grabbed onto his arm, pulling him up and pushed his small body behind him. He turned to their father. "Let me get him to bed. Please" 

Their father glanced between them. Bringing a hand up to his face and letting out a sigh. "Fine, but get me a beer when you get down boy! Otherwise I'll make sure you don't wake up in the morning" He threatened. Yeosang deflated as he grasped the small hand, quickly guiding him upstairs. 

"Come on hyung, beddie-byes" He said, trying to stay positive and keep from his brother that he was terrified. The elder shook his head. "Dadda!" He said back, folding his arms over his chest as he refused to walk into the room. 

"Hyung, now. I'm not going to say it again" Yeosang commanded, face serious. The smaller just shook his head again. "Right, that's it" He picked up his hyungs small body and walked him into the room, the boy shrieking as he was carried. Yeosang quickly shut the door and put his hyung on his bed, going to search for some pyjamas. Once he found some, he gave the room a quick once over, searching for a pull up just in case. As it would seem they wouldn't be able to leave the room tonight. 

Once he found one, he let out a sigh of relief. It wouldn't hold much, there will be a leakage, but it's better than nothing. Quickly dressing the squirming boy, he gathered him in his arms and sat on the bed, gently rocking the boy to get him to sleep. One of his hands was on the boys back whilst the other ran through his hair, engulfing the boys head in his large hand. 

All that could be heard was quiet 'shushing' noises from Yeosang as the boys breaths began to even out as he fell into a slumber. Yeosang let out a breath of relief and laid the boy down, stroking his soft hair and gently kissing his forehead. 

"I'll do anything to keep you safe Hongjoong" He muttered as he walked away, locking the door and going downstairs. 

Yeosang made his way to the kitchen and pulled out a cold beer, opening it and walking to the lounge where his father was watching the TV loudly with his sock clad feet on the coffee table.

"Dad?" He questioned, hoping the elder had fallen asleep. But luck wasn't on his side now. His father turned to him. "Well? What are you waiting for? Give it you little shit!" He beckoned him over. 

Yeosang shuffled over with nervous steps, handing the man his drink. If he could tell the police about his father, he would. But the problem was his father was the chief of police. There was no one who would believe him.

"So, I've heard that you've made friends with that shit, Parks son" His father stated. 

"N.no sir" Yeosang stuttered out, his head lowered. 

"Don't lie to me boy!" He shouted with rage, head whipping around to face the now trembling boy. He shot up and backhanded Yeosang around the face, causing the boy to fall to the ground. Yeosang looked up. "I.." He didn't get much out as his father began littering his body with punches. Not too long into it, he passed out on the lounge floor. 

-

The next morning, Hongjoong awoke to an empty room. Something he wasn't used to at all. As well as having an uncomfortably full pull up. So, he stumbled on shaky legs towards the door, hand grasping the handle and twisting it. 

But it didn't open. 

He didn't think too much of it. Instead he decided to pull out some toys and stuffies and play. 

When Yeosang woke up, he was still in the same place as he was when he passed out. Glancing around, he saw his father had left. Letting out a breath, he slowly got up, not wanting to aggravate his injuries further. He sat on the sofa and did a quick check over himself to ensure nothing was broken. When he was sure there wasn't, he grabbed his phone and powered it on. 

He shot up when he saw the time. 1:39 PM. His jaw dropped as he realised he had been passed out for that long. Quickly discarding of his phone, he ran up the creaky stairs and unlocked his bedroom door. At least his father hadn't gone in there. Yeosang kept the key on his person in a place his father wouldn't look at all times. 

Opening the door, he saw his hyung on the floor playing with his toys. 

"Hey hyung. Sorry I'm a bit late" 

Hongjoongs head snapped up, smile coming onto his face as he saw his brother. "Sangie, Sangie, Sangie!" The boy chanted, clapping his hand and flinging himself towards Yeosang. Not realising he as littered with bruises. 

Yeosang yelped in pain as Hongjoong headbutted his chest. But quickly hid his pain. Taking one look at his hyung he sighed, "Lets get you clean huh?" Grabbing onto the small, clammy hand and leading him to the bathroom. Usually he wouldn't bath the boy more that three times a week to save money. But he was a little more than messy. So it called for a bath. 

He quickly set to work in running the bath, not putting any bubbles in it. Much to his hyungs disappointment. This time, he didn't create a fuss before getting in. Just slipped into the small amount of water when his brother had gotten rid of his clothes.

"How's Joongie today hmm?" Yeosang hummed, trying to get his mind away from what happened last night. "Sangie" Hongjoong replied, pausing. "Happy!" He squealed out, wiggling from his spot in the bath. Yeosang chuckled seeing his hyung so happy. "Are you happy because Sangie's here?" Yeosang teased, already knowing how his hyung would answer. 

The boy only turned to Yeosang with a blinding smile and nodded, wrapping his wet arms around Yeosangs neck. 

Yeosang sighed.

"Just a little longer hyung, and I'll get us out of here okay?"

And he vowed to keep his promise to the one that loves him no matter what.

He'll get his hyung out of here. Even if it's the last thing he does. 

He will.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dont know if there will be an update tomorrow. We'll have to wait and see if my day today is full. 😭


	8. 𝓢𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***Same warnings as last time apply, sorry***

***Same warnings as last time apply, sorry***

The next day Yeosang had work. This time, it is not at the café. Meaning he wold have to leave his brother at home. However, Yeosang was in a full state of anxiety due to what happened on Friday. 

"Hyung, come on wake up buddy. Sangie has to go to work" Yeosang gently shook the sleeping boy. It was 7 in the morning and he was already up and ready. Work at the convenience store starts at 8. 

The small boy groaned, but continued to sleep, snuggling further down into his warm but dirty covers. "Hyung. Come on now. Sangie has to go to work" Yeosang pleaded. After another failed attempt, he simply grabbed under Hongjoongs armpits and lifted the boy onto his hip, carrying him downstairs. He didn't mind that his hyung seemed to be a little damp due to a small accident. After work, he will make sure to grab some diapers for the boy, as well as more pull-ups if this was going to continue. 

"Dadda?" The smaller questioned as he was carried down the stairs. He brought his hands up to his eyes and began to rub them with clenched fists. "No baby" Yeosang whispered, eyebrows scrunched together as he thought of their father. 

"Sangie" The next name came out more like a statement rather than a question. "Belly, belly, belly" the older complained. His stomach was churning with morning hunger. He was more awake now, still on his brothers hip as he turned to look around the kitchen. It wasn't every day that he got to see the world from this high up.

"Ah, careful hyung. I'll find you something to eat, yeah?" Yeosang said, putting on the façade that he usually did when he spoke to anyone. The boy wasn't happy with his life. But his hyung was his rock, his reason for living still. 

He quickly settled the other on a chair and raked around the empty cupboards looking for something for the older to eat. Hongjoong sat on his chair still half asleep and began babbling on different words that he knew. "Apple, Sangie, bowl, feets, pur...purble"

"It's 'purple' baby" Yeosang muttered, still looking. 

"Purple, pinger!!!" The small boy screeched looking at his fingers. 

Yeosang chuckled as he stood up, bones cracking in protest. "Okay hyung, what is this?" He pointed to his head, laughing when the older male did the same. 

"Head" Yeosang reminded. "Next is this, do you know this?" He pointed to his shoulders. Moments like these, Yeosang cherished. Being with his brother and just watching he way he acts, interacting with him without having to worry about anything or anyone. 

"Shold"

"You're so close hyungie! Nearly there!" He encouraged, mouthing the word for his hyung to catch. It really was like having a child. But one that is just slightly taller. 

"Shoulder, shoulder, shoulder!" He clapped his hands once he got what his brother was trying to say. His stomach cut him off from what he was about to say. Looking down at his hungry belly before pointing and glancing up at Yeosang. "Rawr"

Yeosang cooed, handing him over the out of date crackers. It was all they had, he would have to pick something up for them later. Before he passed them over, he made sure to open them as his hyungs motor skills were still a little rusty.

"Thank" Hongjoong said as he quickly began nibbling. Yeosang reached over, ruffling the boys hair. "It's okay Joongie-hyung" Hongjoong loved being called 'Joongie' It made him beam up at his taller brother with a blinding smile. 

"Okay hyung, can you listen very closely okay?" Yeosang said slowly to make sure the other was fully engaged and listening. When he received a nod, he continued. "I have to go to work today, okay? I won't be back until beddie-byes. So, Sangie needs Joongie to be a big boy and stay here. Yeah? You can play with your stuffies or play dress up! Whatever you want okay buddy. But Sangie will lock the door, so don't let anyone in okay?" He explained, equally as slowly as the first sentence he said.

Hongjoong stared at him, pouting. "Stay? Away?" Yeosang had to kind of guess what he meant, as it isn't always clear. "I'm sorry Joongie-hyung. It's not the café today. So Sangie has to leave you here"

The other pushed his crackers forward, loosing his appetite. "Stay, stay, stay!" The older chanted, not happy with his brother leaving. He felt rather odd, something in his tummy was telling him his brother needed to stay. 

"Hyung, stop. I need to go to work, okay? Otherwise we can't get food. You like food right?" Hongjoong paused, considering it. "I need to go baby" Yeosang said sadly, patting the others white hair. He didn't want to go, but circumstances meant that one of them had to work and it defiantly wouldn't be Joong. "Lets get you dressed" He grabbed onto the small hand and pulled him up off of his seat and upstairs. 

Yeosang sat the other down on the bed and quickly wandered to the bathroom and grabbed a wet washcloth, then stripped the whining boy and began to clean on the red rash filled areas. He winced as he did so. "Okay hyung, we're all done now. Sit down so Sangie can grab some clothes okay?" The other did as he was told, meaning Yeosangs job will be much easier. 

He made his way over to the wardrobe and pulled out a simple jumper and some joggers for the boy. They usually saved the jeans for school, so it wouldn't seem as if they were that poor. Yeosang quickly set to work dressing him, then did a once over of the house to make sure there was nothing the boy could hurt himself on. As well as making sure the bathroom door was open and other rooms were locked. 

Once he was sure everything was okay, he made his way back to Hongjoong where he had already gotten some of his toys down into the lounge. "Okay Joongie-hyung, Sangie has to go now okay. Remember what I said" He knelt down, ruffling the others hair. "Hmm, maybe we should dye your hair. I want mine done as well" He trailed off before shaking his head and looking down at the boy who was now chewing on his bears ear. "Hyung, we don't put toys in our mouth okay?" The other looked up the spat the ear out with a smile. 

"What am I gonna do with you, huh?" Yeosang questioned, bringing his hands to the boys sides and tickling him, the smaller realising a shriek and squirming. 

"Bye hyung!" He waved, not really expecting anything back. "Buh-bye" The other called out, making grabby hands as a wave. 

Locking the door as he went out, Yeosang quickly hurried down the road to make sure he wasn't late. He breathed out a sigh and winced as one of his ribs twinged. It wasn't broken, just bruised. He'd had enough broken bones to know when one was broken. 

He quickly walked into the shop, greeting the manager. "Hello Mr. Byun" He bowed respectfully at the smaller man and made his way over to grab the products to re-stock the shelves. 

"Hey kid, you okay?" Mr. Byun made his way over, examining the tallers' face, noticing the fading bruising on it. "Y...yeah, I'm fine" Yeosang stuttered out, avoiding the older males gaze. He flinched when he shot a hand out and grabbed onto his chin and made his look down. Mr. Byun was only 5"8.5, so his neck was bent down at an uncomfortable angle. 

"Hmm, fine" Mr. Byun said, turning around and leaving him stunned. But he sighed. "That was close" He didn't want anyone to find out, otherwise they would take his hyung away from him. They only got hurt because of his foolishness. At least, that's what he thought. So, he continued his agonizingly long shift, noticing the eyes watching him everywhere he goes. 

Back at the house, Hongjoong was happily playing. It had been a couple of hours and he was now running around, pretending to fly. At first, he had jumped off the sofa, but after he landed on his knees badly, he decided to just run instead. He paused when he heard a knock on the door. Glancing at it then to the stairs.

"Sangie says no-no" He bit his lip, thinking of what to do. Sangie did say no, but this person wasn't going away! As he turned to make his way upstairs, the door opened. 

"Dadda!" The small boy ran up to his father with his arms open. "Dadda, dadda, dadda!"

A hug wasn't what he got. Instead he was slammed to the floor, causing him to knock his head on the wall near it. "Fuck off you retard!" His father growled out, making his way to the kitchen. 

"Dadda...retar?" Hongjoong was confused. What did retard mean? And why was his dad calling him it again?

He quickly got up, making his way over to the kitchen where his father was slamming the cupboard doors shut after going through them. Hongjoong flinched at every loud bang that was the result of it. "Dadda, shushy" He mumbled from behind the bear. The boy was scared. Every time he saw his father, Sangie was always there and took him upstairs. He really missed Sangie. 

"Shut up you idiot!" His father sneered, looking straight into his eyes. Hongjoong whimpered and backed out of the room, running upstairs. "Sangie, Sangie, Sangie" He repeated and repeated his brothers name, as if this would make him appear. Hongjoong quickly laid on the floor, shuffling under his bed, not caring for the nasty spiders. 

Loud footsteps made him shriek, they were coming closer and closer to him, causing him to tremble. 

"Where the fuck are you?! And why don't you bastards have food?" The voice shouted. He made his way to the boys room, slamming the door open. The man took a look around the room and chuckled. "YOU FUCKING TWAT, GET HERE NOW!" Hongjoong was shaking so much from fear. But he stayed quiet. 

That was until a hand shot under the bed where he was hiding. "SangSangSangSang-""SHUT UP!" His father shouted and latched onto him, pulling him out from under the bed. 

"Away, away, away!" Hongjoong tried to slip from the grip on his arm, with no luck. The man was much bigger and stronger. A loud smack was heard as his head snapped to one side. Tears gathered in his eyes as he still tightly clutched onto his teddy. 

"Owie, owie, owie" He muttered before punch upon kick was brought down onto his small body. Leaving him crumpled on the floor, curled up in a foetal position. There were tears in his eyes, but he didn't dare let any out. Words were being spat, ones that he couldn't hear over his own mumbling and muttering of 'Sangie'.

It only took the other 5 minutes to get bored of the abuse. So, he decided to leave and find a bar. Hopefully far away from where Yeosang could find him. The white haired boy just curled into himself more and continued muttering, not realising his surroundings.

It was 7 when Yeosang got off his shift. He made sure to grab some food his hyung was sure to enjoy as well as some other items for him, walking out of the store with a smile on his face. That smile quickly dropped when he realised their front door was open. 

He quickly dumped the bags on the counter and saw the mess that was the kitchen. Everything seemed to be open, cupboard doors, everything. Running into the lounge, he saw Hongjoongs toys still laid out. "Hongjoongie-hyung!" He called, running upstairs. At this point, he was panicking. His hyung could be anywhere. 

He could have sworn his heart stopped when he walked into the room. There he saw his hyung. Trembling in a ball, asleep. His heart broke more when he realised the boy had wet himself. Yeosang could only see the boys back, so when he went to lift the older up, he saw the blood.

"Fuck....fuck, fuck" He swore. What the hell happened? Quickly laying the boy down, he rushed to their bathroom and grabbed the medical kit they stored in there. His hyungs face was bleeding and bruised. Yeosang quickly set to work on healing his face, before taking the others clothes off, seeing the black and blue masses on his small stomach. Tears flowed down his face as he reached out to touch.

This seemed to have woken the boy up. "Dadda?" Once Yeosang heard this, his blood boiled. He wasn't expecting it to be anyone else. But after hearing it, it made it worse. 

"No baby. It's Sangie" He whispered with trembling lips, tears sliding down his face and landing on his hyung. At this, Hongjoong quickly shot up, arms wrapping around the others body. "Sangie...no go" 

"Sangie isn't going anywhere Joongie" Yeosang said, wrapping his arms around the body, being careful of the injuries and lifting the boy onto his lap. Again, not caring for the wetness that seeped into his trousers at the action. 

"It'll be okay baby. We'll be okay"

He got the other dressed, making sure to put a diaper on before getting himself ready. The boys soon fell asleep on Yeosangs bed, both wrapped around each other. 


	9. 𝓔𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽

A loud groan rang through the boys' room as Yeosang woke up. He glanced around and saw his hyung with his head on his chest, snuggled in as he slept. 

He brought his hand up, smoothing down the sliver hair that seemed to have fluffed up in the night. It was Monday, but Yeosang deemed his brothers current condition too poor to go to school. So, he got up, carefully and quietly as to make sure the older didn't wake up. He let out a sigh of relief when the other didn't even stir. Yeosang slowly walked to the bathroom and washed his face with some cold water to wake himself up more. 

He quickly jumped into the shower and washed with the lukewarm water that they had before drying off with the same towel he used for Hongjoong a couple of days ago. Walking back into the room clad in only the towel, had saw that the other had now awoken.

"Sangie" The boy muttered with grabby hands and closed eyes. His hair was askew and his face puffy. He looked adorable. 

"Just a second hyung, I've just got to get dressed then i'll come over" He reassured once the boy started to get fussy. Grabbing a sleevless t-shirt, boxers and a pair of navy joggers and getting dressed. Before he turned around, he also made sure to grab some clothes for the older, just one of his tops and a comfy pair of shorts. He knew the scent of himself calmed his brother down considerably. 

"You ready to get dressed now hyung?" Yeosang made his way over, hair still damp from the shower he had. He sure was a sight, even with the tatty clothes he was wearing. 

"Dress" Hongjoong muttered as he yawned, arms still reaching out for his brother.

Yeosang chuckled and grabbed the boy, lifting him up and laying him on the bed. All whilst being careful of his injuries. Grabbing the wipes that were on the bedside table, he quickly set to work in cleaning the boy up. Then slipped a pair of boxers on him, then the shorts and lastly, the t-shirt. 

"Come on you" He pulled on his vrothers arms, dragging the still sleepy body up. It was funny to watch. Yeosang was practically dragging up a wet noodle. The boy was flopping about the place, making Yeosangs life that much difficult. He seemed to have forgotten about his injuries and just played along with his brother. 

"You little monkey. Come on. What does Joongie want to do today?" Yeosang wanted to make the older forgot what happened the previous day. He most likely would, like he does everything. But he felt as if he was to blame as he wasn't here for his brother. And that hurt him deeply. 

"Hmm" Hongjoong thought. What could they do? "Dress, play!!" Obviously the boy would want to play. Yeosang laughed and grabbed the boy, lifting him up and made his way down the stairs. "Come on then. Lets get some breakfast first"

He quickly settled the other on the same chair as yesterday and looked through the bags of food he brought yesterday, pulling out a loaf of bread. "Want some toast, shortie?" He joked. 

Hongjoong watched him as he did this, smiling when he was asked a question. "Bread!" He cheered, small hands clappung in delight. 

"Coming right up!" Yeosang played, quickly settling the slices of bread in the toaster and pushing it down. Walking over to the fridge, he grabbed out the butter and grabbed a knife and two plates from the cupboards. 

The shrill sound of the phone ringing made Hongjoong jump, hands coming up to his face as he remembered the loud noises that his father made yesterday. He whipered and dug his hands deeper into his sockets.

Yeosang ran to grab it, already knowing it was the school, calling them due to their absence. 

"Is this the Kang residence"

"Hello, yes. I'm sorry, I forgot to report that my two sons, Hongjoong and Yeosang, are going to be absent today. They both seemed to have caught a bug of some sort" He answered, prentending to be his father. He had done this many times when they needed to stay off.

"Okay, thank you. Please phone if they are going to be off again" with that, the schools receptionist hung up. Yeosangs let out a sigh of relief as he put the phone back on the holder, making his way back to the kitchen. 

Hongjoong still seemed to be in whatever flashback he seemed to ahve fallen into. Yeosang quickly ran over to him, hands on the boys back as he helped him work through it. There were times where this would happen. If their father came back and did something like he did yesterday, then it usually will leave the boys a little on edge. 

"Sh, you're okay Joongie. Sangies here baby" 

It didn't take long for the boy to snap out of it. When he did, he looked up at Yeosang with big eyes. "Joongie bread?"

This caused Yeosang to chuckle for the hundredth time already this morning. "Yes hyung. Of course. You're so impatient you!" Hongjoong giggled at the teasing. "Bread, bread, bread!"

The younger quickly set to work buttering the, now warm toast. He set the breakfast down in front of the smaller and watched as little hands quickly reached out for the food, bringing it up to the mouth. He ate exactly like a child. How endering. Until Yeosang had to wash the greasy hands. 

Once he saw his hyung take a bite, he began eating his. 

\-----

Tbrought the day, the two were playing with Hongjoongs toys. This was what it was usually like on a Saturday, when Yeosang only had a job at night and not during the day. 

"Phone" Hongjoong muttered when he heard the vibrations of Yeosangs mobile phone for the 15th time already. 

Yeosang sighed as be grabbed it, looking at the notifications. 

10 messages from Yunnie  
5 messages from Little Ho

Yunhos mainly consisted of "where are you?"s and "is Joong-hyung with you if you're off?".

Jonghos were "hey Sangie, want me to come around later? I can make you feel better"

Yeosang shivered. He knew the younger had a crush on him, but he saw him as a younger brother more than anything. Plus, he may or may not have his eyes on somewhere else. Before he could answer, Hongjoongs voice made him look up. 

"Wet" The boy was looking up at him through long lashes. He didnt mean to, it just happened. His shorts were wet and getting wetter as the seconds ticked on. Yeosang sighed. "It's okay bubs" He knew his brother couldn't help it, so he never really got mad. 

Standing up, he grabbed onto the boy when he was finished and led him to the downstairs bathroom and began stripping him of his shorts. 

"Bath or...?" Yeosang questioned himself. They were most likely going to school tomorrow. So, the bath is the best bet really. 

He sat the boy down on the toilet lid and began running the bath. Making sure to put bubble bath in there as well. Hongjoong brightened a considerable amount once he realised. Having an accodent was never fun, no matter how frquesnt they were.

"Bubble, bubble, bubble!" The small boy wiggled and clapped. 

Yeosang made sure the bath water was at the right temperature before lifting the older and placing him in the tub. "Lets get you all clean now shall we?" 

He poured the water on the boys head, wetting the hair before squirting some shampoo on his hand and massaging it on the smaller head. "Hmm" Hongjoong shut his eyes and leaned into the touch, enjoying the pampering. 

"Do you like that hyung?" Yeosang smiled as he continued. The tricky part was the washing. Because the boy was littered with rashes and bruises. He squirmed away from the touch most of the tome, not liking it. 

"It's okay bub, nearly done"

And it was over nice and quickly. Hongjoong was all clean. He was lifted out of the tub and was wrapped in a towel and lifted up. 

"Hrrr, lets get you upstairs" Yeosang groaned as he walked. The boy was wrapped burrito style, leaving no room for him to break free. 

He quickly despositied the giggling boy on the bed and grabbed some new clothes. Same as before but just different. However, this time he made sure to stick a diaper on the boy.

"What do you want for dinner hyung?" He questioned as he dressing him. Hongjoong stepped into the shorts leg holes with a hand on his chin, thinking. 

"'izza!" 

"You're lucky I brought a pizza, mister!"

The two ran down the stairs, Yeosang gravbing the pizza from the freezer and sticking it into the oven once it was heated. Whilst be waited for the pizza to cook, he cleaned the mess on the floor. Making sure to get rid of the smell as well.

They muched on it until there was none left. Hongjoong falling asleep on the sofa, watching some TV. 

"What would I do without you hyung?" Yeosnag muttered, lifting the boy and carrying him to the room. He fell asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, dreaming of tomorrow. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little filler chapter to further develop the characters. Hope you enjoyed!


	10. 𝓝𝓲𝓷𝓮

On Wednesday, the boys were back at school. They got up nice and early, made their way to the café and ended up in Yunhos car. That's where they were now. Along with Seonghwa and Mingi. The others were pestering Yeosang as to why the two weren't at school for two days and why the youngest Kang didn't answer his bloody phone. 

"Yeosang-ah, again? Really? You can't keep missing school like this. If it is because of hyung, can't you get someone to watch over him or something? Like your father?" Yunho question from the drivers seat, focusing on the road ahead. 

Yeosang sighed. "No, we're fine and we both were ill" He states, flinching when Yunho suggests leaving the smallest with their father, not answering that part. He looks up to catch Yunhos gaze in the mirror, before flickering his eyes down to his hands clasped in his lap, wringing them with nerves. 

"Or just leave the freak behind" A voice rang out from the other side of the car. Yeosangs head shot up, ready to say something back when someone beat him to it. 

"Ya! Park Seonghwa, that's enough!" Mingis loud raspy voice burst from the passenger seat. Everyone jumped, shocked from the outburst. Seonghwa pursed his lips, turning his head to look at the scenery out the window. Silence engulfed the group after that. Heavy breathing was heard, due to anger. 

A small tug on his sleeve brought Yeosang from his shock. He gazed down, looking into the big eyes looking back at him. "Sangie, drink?" Yeosang smiled, softly. "Okay hyung, let Sangie grab it yeah?" He said, reaching down into the butterfly bag, pulling out a bottle of juice and handing it to the boy. 

"Thank" Hongjoong muttered, sipping from the straw, not looking at anyone. If he was being honest, he didn't want to go to school. Being at school meant that Sangie would have to go. He didn't want to be alone. "Hyung, are you okay?" Yeosang softly questioned, leaning down the boys ear to not make it obvious. 

Hongjoong looked up, still sipping on his drink. "...Sangie leaves" He muttered, before lowering his gaze again, avoiding eye contact. "Oh, baby..." Yeosang sighed, hand coming up to the platinum hair and gently rubbing it. "It's not for long, okay? Plus, you'll have Woo. You haven't seen him in a long time hyungie, I bet he's looking forward to it!" He tried to convince the older, enthusiastically. Hongjoong hummed and turned to face the front. 

They pulled into the school parking area not 10 minutes after picking Hwa and Mingi up, and filed out of the car. Yeosang quickly glanced at the two tallest. "I'll walk hyung by myself today. Don't worry" He said with a smile. The other two looked reluctant, not wanting to leave them. "Lets just go" Seonghwa grumbled, leaning against the car, arm tattoos on show. 

"Shut up hyung" Yunho rolled his eyes, already having enough with the older. "And get off my car you pig!" Seonghwa just held his hands up in surrender and lifted his body off the car. "Call if you need anything Sang" Yunho said, concerned. "See you in class then" Mingi added and off the three went, leaving Yeosang alone with his brother.

"Come on hyung" Yeosang said, and grabbed onto the tiny hand, leading the boy to his class. The whole way there Hongjoong was trailing a little way behind Yeosang, which was really unusual for the boy. He was usually skipping, seeming so carefree. It unsettled Yeosang a little. But they got to the classroom, Yeosang leading Hongjoong in, still hand in hand. 

"Good morning honey, are feeling better?" Mrs. Shon cooed as she crouched down to the platinum haired boys height. The boy in question just nodded, avoiding her gaze. Mrs. Shons' face scrunched in confusion, glancing up to Yeosang, who just shrugged in reply. "Okay, that's good to see. Why don't you go hang up your coat and bag whilst I talk to Sangie, hmm? Wooyoungs over there, he missed you" The teacher said, straightening up. 

The small boy grabbed his bag from his younger brother and began waddling over to the cloak room. "Is he okay? He's never this quiet" The kind teacher inquired. 

Yeosang sighed, how was he going to explain this? "Urm...He's okay. It might be because he's been having accidents and nightmares over the past couple days" Yeosang lied. Mrs. Shon didn't seem like she brought it, but didn't go further. "Okay Yeosang, have you packed any diapers? We don't have any here"

"Yeah, they're in his bag. Although, he has a couple of rashes" He trailed off, eager to make his way to his own class. But that hope was quickly diminished when he saw his brother standing opposite him in the doorway, eyes filled with tears. "Sangie.." The boy whimpered. 

Mrs. Shon quickly whipped around, taking one look at the boy before rushing over to him, taking him into his arms. "Shh honey, Sangie has to go to class. But you have Wooyoungie, me and the rest of the kids in here!" It was rather clear that she favoured the boy to others. Not that she'd admit it. But it was because the other teachers mainly disregarded the tiny boy, ignoring him because he was difficult. 

Yeosang blinked and turned around, waving. He quickly made his way out of the door, hearing cries of "Sangie!" from his brother. He had to wipe his own tears that threatened to fall. But he made his way to his classroom and sat down in his normal seat, surrounded by his friends. The teacher wasn't in yet, thankfully. 

"Hey Sang, are you okay?" San tentatively asked, bringing his hands up to brush the tallers hair out of his eyes. 

"Y..yeah" He stuttered out, lips trembling and tears gathering in his eyes once again. San cooed as he saw this, bringing the boy into his arms as tears trickled down his princely face. 

"Omg, Yeosang. Are you okay?" Yunho said, making his way over to the two. 

"N..no" He said before breaking down into sobs. 

"He finally disposed of the freak" Seonghwa scoffed, trying to seem that he didn't care. But he did. 

Yeosang tensed, breaking out of Sans grip. With a tense face, he stormed up to the ebony haired boy, fists clenched. "WHAT'S YOUR FUCKING PROBLEM PARK SEONGHWA?!" He screamed, tears still trickling down his face. Everyone froze, the whole class was silent. 

"Your brother is a freak, Yeosang. Why do you keep him around. I know for a fact that it's mainly you two at home" He said, cocky smile on his face. Yeosang felt his anger rise. 

"Fuck off Seonghwa. You know shit!" He spat.

"Face it Sang-ah, your brother is a retard. How much better would your life be if he wasn't here?" 

Yeosang pounced at the taller, screaming with rage and punched the older right across the face. Seonghwas head snapped to the side. Hands quickly grabbed onto the two, pulling them away.

"Let me at him! Hongjoong is NOT a retard!" He screamed, thrashing around in the arms of whoever was holding him. 

"That's enough. Seonghwa, Yeosang, to the heads office, now!" The commanding voice of their teacher caused everyone to whip their heads around. Mr. Kim did not look happy at all. "Now!" He barked at them. Yeosang shook off the arms that were on his, grabbing his bag and stomping out, followed not too far behind by the older, who was now supporting a busted lip and bleeding nose. But he still had that cocky smile on his face. Bastard. 

They ended up getting excluded for 2 days. It wasn't much, but it was supposed to make them 'learn their lesson'. Yeosang walked out of school, going home. It was lunch, meaning he would have to pick Hongjoong up in three hours. He sat on his bed, chucking his shoes to the ground, thoughts running wild. He sobbed.

_Was Seonghwa right? Would life be easier if Hongjoong wasn't here? Would he have to work as much as he did? Perhaps he would have been able to actually be around his friends._

He quickly got rid of those thought. No. Seonghwa was wrong. Without Hongjoong, he would have given up a long time ago. He was he reason the younger was still here. He laid down, exhaustion taking over his tired body and fell into a deep sleep. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking of changing Hongjoong and Yeosangs hair colours. What colours do you think would be best?
> 
> Plus, anyone who is familiar with the disability that Hongjoong portrayed with, please notify me if I'm getting it wrong or going overboard as I only researched and used my own limited knowledge for guidance. Thank you! 😊


	11. 𝓣𝓮𝓷

Yeosang was brought out of his sleep by his phone going off beside him. Not bothering to check who it was, he answered. 

"Hello?" His voice was groggy and thick with sleep as he sat, ruffling his hair. 

"Hey Yeosang. I picked up Hongjoong, but I don't know where you live" A voice came from the other end. Yunho. 

Yeosang let the words sink in and removed the phone from the side of his face, checking the time. 3:48. Shit. He forgot Hongjoong. 

"Hongjoong. Oh my God, I forgot" Yeosang shot up, pulling his shoes on and rushing out of the door, not bothering to lock it. 

"It's fine Sang-ah, me and Mingi decided to pick him up when we heard that you were excluded. He's here and fine. But he keeps calling for you Sang"

Yeosang quickened his pace, walking to the place he knew they would be. And they were. It was on the corner where they always drop them off. He hung up, running towards the car and opening the door, pulling his brother into his arms. "Baby, Sangie is sorry"

The elder just wrapped small arms around Yeosangs waist and sobbed into his chest. There was no tears, for some reason, Hongjoong didn't really cry. Like, at all. Yeosang scooped the boy onto his hip, grabbing the bag.

"See Joongie-hyung. I told you Sangie was gonna be here" Mingi spoke, softer than he ever had before as he watched the two with sad eyes. 

"Thank you. Really. I...I feel so bad. I'm sorry" Yeosang rambled, looking as if he was guilty for everything bad in the world whilst the smaller now dry sobbed into his shoulder. 

"It's fine Sang-ah. I'm sorry that Seonghwa acted like that. He's so rude. I'll make sure to talk to him, don't worry" The taller muttered. 

"Yeah, we'll pick Hongjoong up whilst you aren't in school if you want" Yunho added, eager to help out his best friend. 

Yeosang chuckled, wetly, as he heard the concern in the others voices. "It's fine. I'll walk"

"No, you have work Sangie. Let us help, please" Mingi pleaded, eyes going wide, doing a puppy face. 

"..Fine" Yeosang agreed. "Thanks. I'll take him home now, thank you" He muttered, beginning the walk home, still carrying the sad boy. 

"Hyung, baby, it's okay now. Sangie's here. No ones gonna get you whilst I'm here" He reassured, smoothing one hand down the boy trembling back. 

"Sangie leaves. Joongie sad" The older mumbled into his neck. "Joongie wan' Sangie"

"I know Joongie, I know" He continued to reassure as he opened the door to their small house, never once letting go of his brother. "What would Joongie like for dinner, hmm?"

The boy in questioned whined, not wanting to think about dinner after the day he had. During lunch, the boy refused to eat unless his teacher brought Yeosang to him. Meaning he hadn't had any lunch. Not that Yeosang needed to know. "No!" 

Yeosang sighed, really not in the mood for the behaviour that he knew was going to start. He sat Hongjoong down on the sofa and looked at him whilst crossing his arms. "Ya, Hongjoong. I'll have none of that thank you very much!" He scolded. 

Hongjoong didn't care. Nor did he look up at his brother. Which was a bad decision as he would have seen the 'no bullshit' look on the tallers' face. He smacked his arms down to his legs, screaming out a 'no'

"Hyung. Stop. I won't ask again. If I have to, there will be no dinner" Yeosang said back, sternly. After the shit he went through today, he kind of wanted to prove to himself that the older wasn't too much different from himself. Obviously he knew that Hongjoong was different, but it was the insecurities in his mind that made him want to believe that Seonghwa was wrong. 

"Sangie stupid!" The boy screamed, tears filling his eyes. He didn't mean to act this way, it was just that he was hungry, tired and Yeosang practically ran from him this morning. Not even giving him a hug goodbye. 

"Kang Hongjoong, you listen to me RIGHT NOW!" Yeosang took a quick pause, making sure to take deep breaths to calm his anger. "I've not had a good day buddy. And it's because I got excluded for fighting. Because of you" He didn't mean to place the blame, but it was hard not to. 

Hearing this, Hongjoong paused. Did Sangie fight because of him? Was he a bad boy? Hongjoong kicked his small legs out, accidently caching Yeosang in the process. Yeosang grunted as a foot hit him in the stomach. 

"Go to our room, hyung. Right now" He commanded, gently soothing his still brusied stomach. "NOW!" 

Hongjoonf shot up, afraid of what Sangie would do if he didn't listen. Would he give him ouchies like dadda did? He really didn't want that to happen, so he ran on his uncoordinated legs, up the stairs and into the small room, shuffling under his bed as he sobbed. 

Downstairs, Yeosang was trying to calm down. He knew he should have dealt with that in a calmer way. But today had just been really shit for him. Nothing was going right and everyone who took a breath pissed him off. 

He decided to start making dinner. Just simple chicken nuggets and rice for now. It wasn't the most healthy meal, but it was all they had. Quietly, he set to work, not reaslising the state his brother was in upstairs. 

\-----

"Joongie, dinner!" Yeosang called up as he set the plates on the table. Two plates of rice and nuggets. When he got no answer, he paused. 

"Hongjoongie-hyung, Sangie's made dinner! It's niggets!" Yet again, he got no reply. So, he wandered upsatirs and opened the door to their room. "Hongjoong?" He called, much softer now.

A small whimper was heard from under the bed. Yeosang sighed and walked over, crouching down, whincing when he heard the clicking in his joints. "Joongie. Dinners ready, baby"

Hongjoong let out a cry. "No" He wasn't doing it in a bratty way, more of a scared way. Yeosang felt terrible. "Baby, Sangie's sorry. Can you come out now?" It took 5 minutes of convincing to get the boy out. He didn't want to scare him more, so he didn't grab and drag him out. 

"...Joonie bad?" Hongjoong questioned once he was out and sitting in Yeosangs lap, thumb in his mouth. "No...no of course not. It was Sangie's fault. He shouldn't have shouted at you like that, should he?" Yeosang was cradling his hand gently through the boys hair, calming him down. 

"Joonie sair.." (scared). 

"I'm really sorry bub. I'll make sure not to do it again, okay?" He mumbled into the strawberry smelling hair. "But Joongie. Should we be putting our thumb in our mouth like that? Your hands are all dirty!" He chuckled. But he knew he wouldn't be able to get the older to stop. Having objects in his mouth was a comfort thing for him. As well as Yeosangs scent. But he tried so hard to get him to stop, so he wouldn't do it in school or out somewhere, to no avail. 

Hongjoong shook his head, keeping his small thumb lodged into his mouth. "Okay then shorty. Shall we get some food in there instead then?" And like that, the two were back to normal. At least, for today. 

Yeosang carried the boy downstairs and sat him on his chair. The older immediately dug into his food, feeling very hungry. "Slow down hyung. Let me get your juice" He walked over to where he deposited of the butterfly bag and dug into it, pulling out his bottle as well as his lunch box. When he felt the weight of it, he quickly walked back, settling the drink on the table and opened the box. 

"Hongjoong...you need to make sure you eat, okay?" He sighed out. That was why he quickly dug into his food. 

Hongjoong looked down, ashamed. "Sangie go. No hungie" 

"Okay, but make sure you eat tomorrow, yeah? Sangie isn't going to be at school tomorrow as well" He reminded. 

Hongjoong whined at this, mouth still full of rice. "Saaangie..." he dragged out, displeased with his brother. 

"It's because of what happened today Joongie. Remember?" Yeosang sat in his chair. "Lets just eat, yeah? And...if you're good...we can cuddle!" He teased, knowing how much the smaller loved to cuddle. Hongjoong squealed, clapping his hands and bouncing slightly in his seat.

Yeosang chuckled around his rice, also looking forward to it. 

\-----

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I'm sorry for the late update. I wont be updating tomorrow as it's my dads birthday (🤮) and I have college tomorrow. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thanks for reading


	12. 𝓔𝓵𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷

Thursday came and went quite quickly. But was overall uneventful. Yeosang went to work, Hongjoong went to school and got dropped off at the corner as usual. Friday, however, Yeosang and Seonghwa were back in school. Meaning, tensions were running high throughout the group. 

"Do you guys wanna do anything after school? My parents are gone, so everyone could come around. Sleep over maybe?" Yunho suggested, trying to break the thick atmosphere. "Yeah, sure. But Joong is gonna have to be there. If you don't mind" Yeosang said, sheepishly as he scratched the back of his neck.

"Wooyoung will be coming!" San quickly piped up. Everyone turned to look at the boy. "...what? We've been hanging out. He's actually pretty alright" He mumbled. 

"You just wanna get in his pants" Seonghwa said, knowing his friend. "Like you're any better dude" He snapped back, although not denying what was just said. 

"I know"

_Well...at least he's honest..._

Even though he knew of the fact the older sleeps round, he still felt a little pang of jelousy. 

' _Wait...no...no I am NOT getting feeling for Seonghwa'_ Yeosang thought as he looked back down at the sheet in front of him. It was math, something he was actually quite good in. At least, compared to his friends. He put his head down and continued on his work until the end of the day. 

When the bell sounded, he made his way to Hongjoongs' class. "Wait, hyung!" A voice called out. Turning around, he saw that it was San running up to him. "Yeah San-ah?"

"I'll walk with you!" He said, not bothering to look back at the olders' reaction, walking ahead. Yeosang stood, confused, before he shook his head and caught up. 

"Sangie!" A squeaky voice called out before Yeosang was bulldozed by a small body. "Oof, hyung!" He whined, but wrapped his arms around the older whilst chuckling. He missed this, picking his brother up and getting these hugs. The past two days the boy had been teary when his brother picked him up from the corner, carrying him home. 

"Hi Woo!" He enthusiastically said to the other male as he rocked on his feet. "Hello hyung! Hello Sannie!!!" Wooyoung screeched, ready for whatever they were going to get up to after school. San had messaged him at lunch asking. So, Wooyoung phoned his mum as soon as he was notified, shouting down the phone. His mum easily agreed, already knowing that Yeosang, a person she trusted, was going to be there. Plus, she had met San when he dropped the boy off after the first outing and he seemed rather charming despite his hard exterior. 

"You ready bubs?" Yeosang asked his older brother, carding a hand through the smallers hair. Hongjoong looked up with his blinding smile and big eyes, nodding and giggling. "You are going to be a good boy, right hyung?" Yeosang questioned, a warning behind the teasing eyes. 

"Joonie good!" He clapped, running off to grab his bag and thrusting it into his brothers hands. "Wait hyung. I've just got to talk to Mrs. Shon, okay?" San and Wooyoung had already walked off, going to Sans car most likely. 

Yeosang walked over to the teacher. She was talking to another parent at the minute, but one glance at the youngest Kang, she quickly ended her conversation, dismissing the parent and waving to the student. "Yeosang-ssi, I heard what happened. But I must say, try not to tell Hongjoong what you did. He began acting up yesterday during class. Even hissed at another student and threw something. I know the boy's an angel, but please try and make sure this doesn't happen. It's not your fault" She informed. Yeosang was shocked, not expecting his hyung to do this. He was usually a good boy, following rules and being kind to everyone. 

"Okay...I'll make sure to talk to him. Anything else happen today?" He questioned, not really sure he wanted to know. 

"Yeah, next week, could you possibly pack a couple more diapers? Plus, I suggest getting something for him to keep in his mouth. The toys here aren't really all too sanitary" She chuckled, remembering finding the boy suckling on a teddy that they keep for sensory. 

"Ah...yeah sure. I've noticed he does that a lot now. So, is a pacifier best? I don't want anyone to make fun of hyung. That's the only reason I haven't gotten him one yet" Yeosang replied, scratching the back of his neck with a sheepish look on his face. "Don't worry, no one will judge here. If they do, they'll have to answer to me" She evilly giggled. 

"Thank you Seung-wan noona" He said, smiling. "Ah, it's fine. Now you go have fun, have a nice weekend. Bye darling!" She waved to Hongjoong, the boy waving back and bouncing impatiently on his feet. 

On the walk to the car, Hongjoong had wrapped both arms around Yeosangs arm, holding him tightly. "So hyung, I heard you've been a bit naughty. You know better than to throw things at other people" He lightly scolded. 

"Nuh-uh! Meanie to Joonie!" He replied, adamant that he didn't do anything wrong. "Well, if they were being hurtful to Joongie, what should Joongie 've done, hmm?" He asked as they came up to the cars. He didn't want to start anything now and asking instead of telling the older usually made him see what he did wrong. "Say Mrs. Shonnie" He mumbled, looking down. 

"Good boy, do that next time okay baby?" Yeosang ruffled the boys hair, Hongjoong lightening up realising he wasn't in trouble. "Kay kays" He said, wrapping his short arms around the tallers middle. 

"Hey guys, you ready to go?" Mingi called, smiling down at Hongjoong. "We're actually getting our hair done. You guys want anything done? I'll pay" He said, hoping Yeosang didn't refuse. "No, no, we couldn't do that to you" Yeosang refused. Mingi sighed, knowing he would. "No, think of this as a gift. You can't refuse a gift!" Mingi said, pleased with his response to the situation. 

Yeosang sighed, looking at Hongjoongs hair. He really could do with a cut and colour change. "Okay. But only because you insist" Mingi gave him the biggest smile in return, looking adorable. How on Earth could this boy have been the most feared in the whole school and landed most of his friends in hospital. 

They got in the cars, the same planning as last time. It didn't take long until they pulled up at a hairdressers. "I know the owners. Well, it's actually my auntie, so...yeah" Mingi informed, getting out of the car and walking in. The place was pretty big. Rather clean and posh looking. It made Yeosang feel self-conscious all of a sudden. 

"Mingi! Dear, it's so nice of you to visit! Yunho, you too cutie. Oh my god Mingi, who are these cuties?" His auntie squealed, running up and giving the two pillars a hug, then turned to the Kangs. The other car wasn't here yet, probably to get some clothes for their night at Yunhos house. 

"That's Yeosang and Hongjoong. They're brothers. Hongjoongs the midget and Yeosang is the handsome one" Mingi told her with a laugh. "Hello" Yeosang greeted, bowing respectfully. "Hyung.." He tried to get his brothers attention, but he was distracted by the pretty colours on the walls of the girls with dyed hair. 

"He's your hyung?" The woman questioned, shocked. 

"Yeah, he is a little different. I'm sorry" He apologised before adding "Hyung, say hello" The small male turned to the eccentric looking woman. "Hi-hi" He waved his small hand shyly, hiding behind Yeosangs bigger frame after he spoke. 

"Aw, well aren't you two cuties!" She squealed, yet again. Thankfully, the bell chimed, signalling the other had arrived. They quickly got down to business. Yeosang decided to just get a trim whilst Hongjoong got his hair coloured and cut. "What colour are you having Joongie-hyung?" Yunho questioned from where he was sat, waiting. 

"Hmm, Joonie no know" He mumbled, trying to think of the colours of the rainbow that he learnt in school. "How about blue? Or red?" Jongho piped up from where he was sat getting his hair dyed red. 

"No, have it blue" Seonghwa said. He didn't have anything done to his hair as he recently got a cut. 

"Blue, blue, blue!" He cheered, clapping his hands. Joongie loved the idea of having blue hair. "Manners hyung" Yeosang said as a reflex. "Peas, blue?" He questioned, big sparkly eyes looking at the woman who had a weak heart. 

"Aw, of course my little blueberry, anything for you precious" She leaned forward, booping the boys nose, causing Hongjoong to giggle. 30 minutes later, he was a precious little blueberry. 

"Are we all done? Lets go!" Yunho cheered after they had all paid. "To mine!" He was unbelievably excited to have his friends around. Don't worry, his parents had even said they can go over, so he wasn't breaking any rules. (Goody two shoes). They got in the car, excited to finally hang out as a group of 8 in more of a personal space, away from prying eyes. 

"Hey Yunho? Can we make a quick stop please? I need to pick something up" Yeosang asked. "It's fine, you both have clothes left over from last time" Yunho replied, thinking that was what he wanted. 

"It's not that. I need to grab some...diapers" He mumbled the last part, but the other two still heard. "Okay Yeosangie, you don't need to be embarrassed, we know he can't help it" Mingi responded with a kind smile. Man, Yeosang was lucky to have such understanding friends, it made him a little emotional. "Thank you"

They pulled into the nearest store, Yeosang jumping out and rushing into it, ignoring the call from his brother. He quickly found what he was looking for, but paused when he saw something else. It wouldn't hurt, right? Shaking his head, he picked up the paci and paid, before running back to the car. "Sangie, no go!" Hongjoong told him, arms crossed and pout on his face once he got in. "Sorry hyung. Just needed to get something" And with that, they were off again. 


	13. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓵𝓿𝓮

The 8 friends soon found themselves standing in the large house. Due to Yunhos parents being rich, they could afford a nice, posh house with plenty of space for guests. Most of the group were rather well-off, only the Kangs and Wooyoung weren't. 

  
"Wow, wow, wow, Yunho hyung, you have a huge house, it's so big-" Wooyoungs ramblings got cut short by Seonghwa, "Yeah, we get it kid, he's got a big house. We all do" He deadpanned, not really enjoying their time together already. 

  
"Oi, back off" San whispered in his ear with a warning. But Seonghwa wasn't bothered. He didn't think San would do much damage. 

  
"You have a big house too, Sannie?" Wooyoung questioned, eyes widening and glistening. San chuckled whilst ruffling the youngers hair. "I sure do baby"

  
"Okayyy...come on everyone. Lets go to the lounge, there's games in there" Yunho said with a mischievous smirk. He led them to the lounge but pulled Mingi away, walking upstairs together. The others just let them get on with it, not really wanting to know what the other two were getting up to. So they got settled down and set up the consoles, deciding who's going to be partnered with who. 

  
"I call dibs on Sannie!"

  
"Wooyoung!"

"I call Yeosang!"

  
Seonghwa paused, realising what this meant. It's not like the boy could play anyway, but it still ruffled him up the wrong way. "Jjongie, I'll go with Joong" Yeosang muttered, face red and slightly uncomfortable with being put with the younger, especially after those weird messages he sent at the beginning of the week. 

  
"No you're playing with me" Jongho commanded. Yeosang complied. Before anyone else could say anything, Yunho and Mingi came walking down with a bunch if blankets and pillows.

  
"We've arrived. I know you missed us" Mingi screamed as he walked through the door. Wooyoung winced at the volume, not used to anyone but himself being loud. 

  
"Ya, Mingi, quiet!" Yunho complained with a smile on his face. 

  
They quickly settled down and began playing. The first game on the list was Mario cart. Which caused arguments to break out, Seonghwa was, surprisingly, the one who ended them in a way that none of them had seen before... _like an exasperated mother?..._

  
It frightened them enough to make them stop. But San and Wooyoung ended up winning in the end. "Lets order food!" Yunho cheered, already getting up the app to order pizza. "What does everyone want?" 

  
Yeosang turned, not realising Hongjoong had gotten up from his seat. "Hey, hyung...where's Hongjoong?" Everyone turned to the boy that spoke. "Toilet perhaps? Or he could just be wandering" Jongho said, already knowing the older did that when he was at Yunhos.

  
"He's probably in the spare room Sangie" Yunho muttered, already having a strong idea of where they boy could be. Yeosang quickly got up and ran up the stairs to the spare room they usually stayed in. Opening the door, he looked around the dark room. Far too dark for him to see, so he turned the light on, feeling relieved when he saw the figure underneath the covers. 

  
"Hyung...?" He made his way over and crouched, looking at the olders peaceful sleeping face. Yeosang sighed, knowing he had to wake him up otherwise he wouldn't get any food. "Joongie, baby, wake up" He gently shook the bony shoulders in an attempt. Hongjoong stirred. "Sangie..." He whined whilst he rubbed his eyes with fists. 

  
The boy was tired and didn't want to wake up, so he began whining, not saying anything coherent, just making whining sounds from the back of his throat, warning the younger of an upcoming tantrum. "I know buddy, but we're having pizza. You like pizza, right?"

  
This still didn't calm him. As he sat up, he brought his arms out to Yeosang, waning to cuddle up into the others body heat. "No hyung. You need to eat. For me?" 

  
"No, no, no" He sleepily mumbled, thumb coming up into his mouth. "Ah, that's not nice hyung, thumbs stay out of our mouths, okay?" Hongjoong just whined louder, beginning to become restless as he kicked his feet out, thumping on the soft mattress below him. 

  
"Stupid" Hongjoong muttered, eyebrows scrunched together whilst biting down on his thumb. If it was just Yunho here, it wouldn't be so bad. the older has seen some tantrums before. But because the others were here as well, Yeosang pleaded with any God that would listen to make his hyung stop. 

  
"Hyung. No, that is not a nice thing to say, now is it? And we need to go down so we can order some food, or there'll be nothing for us" Yeosang said quickly, getting frustrated. Hongjoong fell back down on the bed with another whine.

  
"I think Yeosang said get up, didn't he?" A stern voice bounced around the room, making the two occupants jump. "So, you should listen to him, shouldn't you?"

  
Hongjoong got up, standing behind Yeosang and clinging onto his shirt with his thumb still in his mouth. "Sangie...'way, 'way, 'way!" He didn't like the tone that he was being spoken to in. It made him feel uneasy, like he had been bad. Which, he was testing the limits, but he was just tired. School drains his little body. 

  
Seonghwa sighed at hearing this. "Sorry, but Yunho had ordered your usual. And Hongjoong, listen to Yeosang, okay? He's trying his best" He said, before fleeing from the room as if the words he said would curse him. 

  
Yeosang stood in shock. What had just happened? He didn't know, but it made his heart do a thing. Something he wasn't used to. 

  
_Do I like Seonghwa? Oh my God, I like Seonghwa!_

  
His face flushed when he realised. But was brought out of his thoughts by a hand tapping on his forearm at a constant rate. "Hyung?"

  
"Joonie sowie" He mumbled, muffled due to his thumb. Yeosang sighed, wrapping his arm around the boy. "It's alright, just listen to me next time, okay?" Hongjoong hummed in reply, so Yeosang quickly got him changed and into some pyjamas and carried him downstairs. Fuck what anyone else thinks. 

  
They sat down on the sofa, the older on the brunettes lap as he suckled on his thumb. "Hyungie, Mrs. Shon said you should do that!" Wooyoung said when he saw the two. "No" Hongjoong mumbled, causing Wooyoung to let out a long sigh. "He never listens to me!"

  
"Baby, Joongie's just had a long day, let Sangie help him, okay?" San soothed, brining a hand up to stroke the boys hair. The sound of the bell caused 4 out of the 8 to shout and cheer as Yunho went to collect the food. 

  
"Pizza time!"

  
\-----

  
They lay down, snuggled down under the covers after eating. Putting on movie after movie. Yungi were lying on the love seat, Woosan on the floor on a blow-up materess that seemed to have appeared, Jongho was fast asleep on the arm chair and Seongsang were also cuddled up, unknowingly as they slept. Hongjoong was laying between the two. Those who were awake sent each other knowing glances. Man, was tomorrow going to be fun. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the half-arsed chapters, I'm so tired!!


	14. 𝓣𝓱𝓲𝓻𝓽𝓮𝓮𝓷

_'Hmm, so comfy and warm...'_ Yeosang thought as he shifted in his sleep, snuggling closer to the warmth pressed against his body.

_'...Wait, what...?'_

He shot up, hands pressed onto the chest underneath him as he pushed himself up into a seating position. "Hmm" Seonghwa groaned as he was woken up. A dark red blossomed on Yeosangs face and neck, heat rushing all over his body as his stomach did flips.

'No, no bad Yeosang, you don't like him!' He told himself mentally as he quickly dashed off the older boys chest. 

"Morning pretty" Seonghwas gruff voice came out, cockily staring at the younger, causing him to become redder under the intense stare. "Shut up" He snapped, quickly making his way to the kitchen where everyone else was. 

Jongho looked up from where he was, talking to the others. Once he saw the state of one of his best friends face, he bit back a frown and looked at him. Yeosang just sent him a signal that clearly said 'fuck off' and walked over, taking a seat next to Wooyoung. He obviously mistook the face that was sent his way.

"Morning" He mumbled, looking down so nobody else would see his face. Mingi was the one who placed a nice stack of pancakes under his chin. "Eat up" He said commandingly, knowing how thin he was. Looking up, he realised that his brother and Yunho were missing. "Where's hyung?" He questioned, mouth full of pancake.

"Yunho's getting him ready" San answered, attention shifting from Wooyoung to Yeosang. _'getting him ready?...Oh no. What if he sees-'_

His thoughts were cut off when he saw Yunho walk in with Hongjoong on his hip, making him look even smaller than he is. His thumb was in his mouth as he looked around the people occupying the room. "Sangie, Sangie, Sangie! Breakie!" He wiggled in the hold he was in, face scrunched in concentration. Yunho laughed out loud "Okay hyung, calm down, Yunnie will put you down!" He said with a smile, lowering the boy down. 

The said boy ran straight to his younger brother, strangling him with his short arms. "Hyung, careful" He muttered, smile on his face as he pulled the boy onto his lap. "Yunnie change" Hongjoong whispered into his ear, so no one else could hear him. "Okay bubs" Yeosang whispered back. 

Their friends were watching on with fond smiles as the two brothers interacted. It was sweet, watching them like this. They knew Yeosang didn't like doing this at school and they didn't really hang around with the two after school, so this was a rare sight for them. 

Once Seonghwa stumbled into the room, it fell silent as everyone continued munching on their breakfasts. Only Sans cooing could be heard. 

"Hey Sang, I need a word with you after breakfast" Yunho announced, smile on his face. 

_'Shit'_ Yeosang thought, freezing mid chew and glancing at the boy in his lap as he picked up the food with his fingers. "No, Hongjoong, use a fork" He said as he picked one up, stabbing it into the pancake and bringing it to the boys mouth. Hongjoong quickly dropped the piece in his hand and opened his mouth, waiting to be fed. 

"Now you do it. Show Sangie that you're a big boy" He encouraged, passing over the fork. Hongjoong wrapped his small hand around it, ignoring the many eyes on him and forcefully stabbed the food and awkwardly brought it up to his mouth, smearing the syrup over his face, but successfully getting the food in his mouth. 

"Bi' boy!" He exclaimed as he chewed. Many around him chuckled as they watched. 

"You're right, hyung. You're a big boy. You wont be needing Sangie's help anymore!" He joked. Hongjoong didn't see the joke, however. Instead he quickly whipped around, eyes wild as he accidentally hit Yeosang around the face. "No go!"

Yeosang winced as he rubbed his face with one hand, the other holding Hongjoong in place so he didn't fall. Looking into the smallers' watery doe eyes, he remembered what happened the last time he left the boy alone, causing him to immediately splutter out apologies, wrapping his arms around the trembling form. "Sangie's not going anywhere, baby"

Everyone was watching on, wanting to ask what just happened, but refrained from doing so. Yunho made a mental note to ask later when he speaks to him about what he found.

Breakfast ended not long after that. No one spoke, just ate whilst glancing back at the two boys as they whispered.

When Yeosang sent Hongjoong off to play with Wooyoung, the boy happily complying, Yunho decided now was the perfect time to speak to the brunette. "Yeosang-ah, can I talk to you? In private?" Yeosang was getting nervous. Were they about to be outed? What's going to happen? Are they going to take hyung away?

He didn't realise that his breathing had sped up, until Yunho was guiding him to a chair and was rubbing his back. 

"It's okay Sang" Yunho reassured. "But I need to ask. When I was changing hyung, he seemed to have a couple of...questioning cuts and bruises. Yeosang...is everything okay at home?" Yunho spoke carefully, not wanting to startle the younger. 

_'shit...he did find out'_ Yeosang was wracking his brain, trying to figure out what he could say. But he knew his friend would figure out he was lying. "Hyung fell down the stairs! You know how he is-" He rambled off, but Yunho cut him off. 

"Cut the crap Yeosang. What's going on? I've seen you covered in them. I've always waited until you said something instead of confronting you. Not wanting to worry you. And the fact that you won't let us drop you off, at your house?! You know we won't judge. Now that I've seen them on Hongjoong, I won't stay silent. So, tell me...what is going on?"

Yeosang felt tears fill his eyes as he realised there was no way out of it. How long had his best friend known something was up? He hoped it was only him that knew. No one else. But, if Yunho knew, Mingi most likely knew. 

"You can tell me Sang" Yunho reassured as he continued rubbing the boys back. "Dad" Yeosang said, before he started sobbing. Yunho sighed, so his suspicions were correct. Before Yeosang could explain further, he carefully led the boy to his room to get more privacy, Yeosang still sobbing. 

They quickly sat down, Yunho locking the door. "Dad...isn't home much. When he is, he's always drunk. And he...gets violent sometimes" Yeosang explained once he clamed down some. "But it's okay, I can take care of hyung" 

Yunho smiled sadly, knowing what might happen if they told anyone. Their dad was the chief of police, very dedicated to his work, no one would believe them. "I know you can Sang" He took the boys trembling form into his arms, just rocking him for now. They got disrupted by a knock on the door 10 minutes later. 

"Hey, hyungs? Hongjoongs crying. We can't calm him down" Yeosang let out a long suffering sigh as he heard what San told them. "Let's go" He said standing up. Yunho quickly caught his wrist. "You guys are always welcome here. You know my parents love you two" They did, always giving them love and warmth when they came over. It was nice. "Thank you. Don't tell anyone, okay?" Yeosang said. 

"Mingi knows, I can't hide it from him. But I won't tell anyone else. Promise" He didn't know if it was a promise he could keep. But he said it to ease the youngers mind. 

They made their way down, San leading them. Downstairs, Hongjoong was in a corner, sobbing as he wrapped his arms around his limbs. He was terrified. Sangie promised not to leave. Now he couldn't find him. Causing him to fall into a blind panic, stumbling around the room and startling everyone. He was so caught up in his panic that his eyes weren't registering anything that was going on. The boy could only hear his own breathing and heartbeat. 

Yeosang swore, rushing to the boy. Everyone was watching, standing away as the scene happened before them. 

"Baby, shh, come back to Sangie. It's okay. Sangie's here" Yunho quickly sent everyone out of the room, although he stayed in case his assistance was needed. 

Hongjoong still didn't register his brothers voice, he kept crying out for the younger. "Sangie!"

"Come on bubs, I know you can do it. It's Sangie, remember? Sangie's here!" His lips were trembling as he spoke, tears streaming down his face as he failed to help his brother. "Sang, let me help" Yunho approached, carefully. Yeosang fell back, defeated as he cried, watching his brother cry and panic. "O..okay" 

Yunho took a breath to prepare himself, then walked straight up to the boy, lifting him and taking him over to the sofa, sitting him on his lap. The whole time, they small boy was kicking and punching as he began to panic more. It wasn't the best way to help, but he hoped it worked. 

"Hey honey, it's Yunnie. You know Yunnie, right? The big one that loves every single one of Joongies cuddles" He trailed off, bringing the boy close to his body so he could copy his rhythm of breathing and feel the vibrations of his words. Yeosang himself looked as if he was about to fall into a panic attack, something they all didn't need right now. "See Sangie, Joongie's okay" He reassured, not really knowing if it was the truth or not. But it was, because 5 minutes later, the boy began to calm down. "Sangie...Yunnie?" He questioned, looking up at the others kind face. "Yeah sweetie, and Sangie's over there!" He pointed him out. 

Yeosang shot up, collecting the boy in his arms and onto his hip, gently bouncing him, calming them both. "You're okay, Sangie's here"

Yunho watched on, not caring for the aches from the punches he received, knowing that they'll be okay. He felt relieved that he knew. But also worried. He didn't know what to do with what he was told. But he would help out as much as he could. He vowed to. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the wait! Because I joined my college course late due to dropping out from one, I ahd to catch up with 2 weeks of art! I'm so sorry. Then I got ill...but I'm mostly okay now! Sorry again.


	15. 𝓕𝓸𝓾𝓻𝓽𝓮𝓮𝓷

The days following were tough. With both Yunho and Mingi being aware, it made Yeosang feel a little on edge. Especially with Hongjoong being very clingy and anxious. Usually the boy would have forgot or moved on. But the panic attack he had really left him feeling unsettled.

Today was Wednesday. The boys were all in school. It was going how every school day does. Dragging on with the endless mind numbing voices of the teachers. 

Thankfully, they were 5 minuets away from the end of the day. Yeosang sat, palms sweaty as he thought of a certain tattooed male that was sat behind him. He so desperately wanted to turn and take a peak. But every time he thought of it, a blush fell over his face. He was too embarrassed. 

"Okay class, you can go!" The teacher shouted over the bell, signalling for them to all get the he'll out of her class. 

Yeosang shot up, ignoring the others as he stuffed the papers into his bag and run through the door. Straight down the hall and in front of his hyungs class. 

"Sangie" A blob of blue was suddenly under his chin, arms wrapped around his torso and nose nuzzling into his chest. 

"Heya hyung. Are you okay?" He asked softly, carding a hand through the hair. 

The smaller looked up, doe eyes big and sparkling, pacifier in his mouth and shook his head no. 

"Why?" He asked, equally as soft as the last. 

"Sangie go" 

Yeosang sighed, already knowing that this was the reason. But he just didn't know how to help his hyung. He knew that he had grown some sort of separation anxiety to him due to what their father did. 

"Well Sangie's here now, baby. Let's go home, yeah? Say bye-bye to Wooyoungie and your teacher okay?" 

The older let go of his brother and ran to his friend, giving him a tight hug and a peck on the cheek with his pacifier still in his mouth. Before waving at his teacher. 

Yeosang grabbed the small hand and the boys bag and off they went. 20 minuets of just walking and no talking. Hongjoong had his brothers hand in a death grip as they trudged along. It was nearing winter and the leaves were starting to fall and the air was crisp, sending shivers down the boys spines. 

But they made it back in silence. Quickly locking the door and running up to put some comfy, fluffy pyjamas on and snuggle down on the sofa. 

"Hyung, I know you don't like it, but Sangie has to leave some times. He can't always be with you. But that doesn't mean I'm leaving you. I would never leave such a cutie alone by himself" Yeosang cooed as he squished the cheekies of the whining boy. 

"But...Joonie nee' Sang" he whined out, huffing as he tried to get out of the grip on his cheeks and snuggle into his brothers warmth instead. 

"I know baby. That's why I'm not leaving you forever. Sangie will always be by-" 

They were cut off by the door forcefully slamming open. Both paused, making sure not to let out a breath. 

"Stay here" Yeosang commanded. 

"No..no leave Joonie" Hongjoong whispered with shaking lips. He was scared and Yeosang was the one that made it better when he was scared. So he couldn't leave! 

"Hyung, trust me" With that, he slowly crept to the door to investigate. What he saw made him freeze. It was his father. In all his drunken glory. Passed out on the floor. 

He made his way over, making sure to keep quiet to not wake the man and knelt down. When the smell of alcohol reached his nose, he flinched back. But he had to make sure the man was actually unconscious. 

He was. 

"Damn, what do I do now?" He had to think quickly, should he get Hongjoong out of the house before the man woke up. 

Making his way back, he quickly reassured his brother and ran upstairs, packing an overnight bag and grabbing his phone. 

He quickly dialed a number and whilst rushing around, grabbing clothes and things his hyung would need for however long they would need to stay away. 

"Hello...?" A raspy voice sounded through the phone, out of breath. As well as a muttered curse in the background. 

"Yunho, can you pick us up? Dad's home and I don't want anything-"

His best friend cut off his ramblings. 

"Sure. We'll be there as soon as possible Sang-ah. Walk to the end of the road, okay?" Yunho hung up, running to his car along with Mingi.

Back at the Kangs, Yeosang was rushing around with the bag of things and ran back downstairs, putting the bag on Hongjoong. 

"Come on baby. We're going to stay around Yunhos house okay?"

The boy looked up at him, confused. "Sleep over again?" 

"Yeah hyung, a sleep over again"

He pushed the boy out of the back door and turned back around, the sight of his father running over scaring him. 

"Run, Hongjoong run!"

Was the last thing he said before he passed out. 

Hongjoong didn't look back, just ran and ran until his legs got numb. He recognised the place he was at, but it didn't hold any significance to him, so he didn't really know. 

He just sat on the swing as he cried, rather loudly, into the dark night. Although, he paused when he saw someone coming over to him.

"Hongjoong?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry. I think I may begin updating on Wednesdays and Fridays only. Maybe a weekend, don't know. Due to college and stuff. Sorry for the wait!


	16. 𝓕𝓲𝓯𝓽𝓮𝓮𝓷

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to let everyone know, this story isn't there to make fun of anyone who has any disorders like this. I, myself have dealt with those like this, although not as severe. But, if anyone finds this offensive, then I'm not forcing you to read it. 
> 
> This is just to show people what some people still think like to those whom are like this due to not understanding or knowing how to act around them. 
> 
> Plus, its also to show the effects on those taking care of them. It isn't easy for any party involved. Its unfortunate, but it is how it is. 
> 
> Im sorry if it offends any of you.

"Hongjoong?"

Hongjoong looked up to the person standing above him. It was Seonghwa. Once he saw the older, he quickly stood and dashed over to him, sobbing. 

Seonghwa was shocked. He hadn't really been the nicest to the boy. But there was a reason that would be revealed later on. To have him hugging him kind of shocked the elder. 

"...erm...are you okay?" He awkwardly said, patting a hand on the trembling back. 

"Sangie...dadda. Sangie nigh-nights!" He sobbed out, actually crying. Another thing that shocked Seonghwa. Over the year that he had known the boy, not once has he cried. Even when people were saying nasty things to him. 

Glancing around, he saw that the younger had his school bag in his possession. Huh? 

"What do you mean? Is Yeosang okay?"

Hongjoong sobbed louder at the thought of his brother. 

Seonghwa was panicking. He had absolutely no idea what to do. But one person might. 

Fishing out his phone, he dialed Mingis number, in hopes that the younger could help. 

After a third ring, he picked up.

"Look hyung, can't talk right now. There's something going on"

"Wait, Mingi. I have Hongjoong with me. He's at the park outside my house. He's crying and saying 'Sangie nigh-night'. What does that mean? What's going on?" 

A shout and a curse was heard on the other end. 

"Hyung, we'll tell you later. Can you please just take Hongjoong home with you? Make sure he's okay?" 

Mingi didn't wait for an answer. He just hung up after instructing his hyung to do that. 

"What am I supposed to do now?" He muttered, the younger still wrapped around him. 

He sighed, gently bringing a hand up to the youngers head that rests just below his shoulders. Very carefully, he cards his fingers through his greasy hair. 

"You remind me of my little brother..."

Seonghwa sighed, before grabbing the bag out of the vice like grip the other had and gently led him away, to his house. Perhaps his hyung could help. 

\-----

Back at the Kangs, Mingi and Yunho just pulled up when they received a phone call from Seonghwa. This made them feel even more on edge. Quickly hanging up, they ran towards the house and throught the open tattered door. 

Yunho paused, shooting a hand out to stop Mingi from moving any further. Mingi sent a questioning look over to his boyfriend, but understood when he gestured towards the sofa, where an older male was passed out. 

Slowly and quietly, they crept over to where the back door was open. Yunho covered his mouth in shock when he saw the state of his best friend. They both ran to him, making sure to stay quiet. 

"Yeosang? Yeosang, wake up buddy. C'mon..." They shook his body carefully, trying to wake him.

"...hyugggg" he whined out, now semi-concious. 

"Hongjoong's safe. Don't you worry. Now let's get you out of here" Mingi quickly gathered the boys skinny frame in his arms and carried him out, bridal style, all the way to the car. There they quickly pulled away, adrenaline pumping through their veins and heats ready to burst out of their chest. 

But once they saw the house disappear, they sighed in relief. 

\-----

"Not far now Hongjoong" Seonghwa muttered, not giving a piggyback to the sleeping boy. He walked up his driveway and slowly crept in, making sure to not wake up his mother. 

Although, when the light suddenly flickered on, he knew he was doomed. So, he paused and slowly turned around. 

"Park Seonghwa, where the hell- oh my Lord. Who's that poor boy? Oh. Poor baby" His mother, Hyun-ah, cooed as she quickly walked over, ignoring her sons presence and took the sleeping boy off his back and to the sofa. 

"Aww, he's so cute. Wait...Seonghwa, what the hell were you doing with him?" She demanded, eyes piercing into her son. Now, Seonghwa was the ultimate, stereotypical bad boy at school. But he was also a mummas boy. Never wanted to get on her bad side and loved her oh so dearly. 

"Mum, I can explain...well, actually. I don't really know what happened. But...Mingi does!" He rambled on, staring at the small boy wrapped in his mother's arms. 

"Honey, what...?" Seonghwa cursed his luck when he saw his father come in, all bleary eyed and heavy with sleep. 

"Seonghwa has just come back. And he's brought a...friend?" She said, rather confused. 

"Seonghwa, what's going on son?" 

"Well, you know that person I like?" When he got two nods, he continued. "This is his older brother. He was in the park. By himself. Which he shouldn't be, definatly not at this time. What was Yeosang thinking" He rambled on to himself. 

"Darling, surely if he's older than Yeosang, he would be fine going to the park. Alone?"

"He's like Jaemin" He muttered sadly as he remembered his younger brother. 

"Oh" Silence fell in the living room as they all remembered back to the poor boy. Although, a whimper broke this, causing everyone's attention to shift to the boy on Hyunas lap. 

"Shh sweetie. It's okay" She ran a hand through his hair, trying to settle him. But, he woke up. 

"Sangie?...where Sangie?" Once he looked around at the faces looking at him, he shot up and grabbed onto the one he knew. Too many new people was a scary thing for the boy. Too overwhelming. 

"Seongie...scare!" He wailed, tears slipping down his face as he tried to burrow himself into the older. 

"It's okay. Sh, kiddo. You're safe now" he mumbled, letting the boy do as he wanted. He knew he was an asshole before, but it was only because he felt enraged that his brother, Jaemin, who was like Hongjoong in many ways, didn't survive. But Hongjoong was living and was completely oblivious to the fact. He didn't hate him, he was jealous. 

"Mum...can you take over whilst I call Yunho, please?" He pleaded, widening his eyes as he knew his mother would do anything for him like this. 

"Oh fine" she sighed, gently guiding the blue haired boy into her arms. 

Seonghwa took this chance to grab his phone and dial a number, being relieved when hey picked up. 

"Hey, what's going on man? Hongjoong is scared shitless over here. But my mums with him, so he's fine"

A tinny voice replied. 

"It's okay now. But...can we come over? My parents aren't in and I think it would be best if we had some adult help"

Seonghwa's heart dropped at this, gulping as he thought of all the bad things that could have taken place. 

"Yeah, sure. Come right over" 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aww, arent Seonghwas parents so nice?   
> I wonder what the connection is between the Parks and the Kangs. Or if there is any...🤔


	17. 𝓢𝓲𝔁𝓽𝓮𝓮𝓷

Yunho raced over to Seonghwas house, quickly pulling up and rushing to the door whilst his boyfriend was carrying his best friend. He hastily knocks on the door, waiting for it to be open. Although he was surprised when he saw Mr.Park open it instead of Seonghwa. 

"Quickly, come in boys" The older man ushered them in, already having an incling of an idea of what was going on. He was a prosicuter, you see. So, he was very familiar with what might be going on. Especially to the chief of the polices' sons. He had some run ins with the man, quite a few actually, and from the moment he introduced himself, he knew there was something off about the man. 

Yunho quickly made his way in, Mingi following closely behind. What he saw was extremely unexpected. Hongjoong curled like a kitten on Seonghwas lap, whilst the older gently soothed the sleeping boy. 

Once Seonghwa saw the state of Yeosang , he gently passed the boy over to his mother and shot up, running over and snatching him out of Mingis protective hold and laid him down on the sofa. 

"..Yeosang..." he sighed, hand stroking the side of his face. 

"..Hhhgr..."

"Yeosang? Are you awake?" He said, anxiously waiting for the fluttering eyes to open. 

"Move" His father said as he gently pushed his son out of the way, settling down with the medical kit and began to clean the younger. 

"Oh these poor boys" Mrs. Park whispered out sympathetically as she rocked the sleeping boy in her arms. 

"Yunho...what happened?...Tell me!" Seonghwa demanded when the younger wouldn't speak. 

"It...ah...their father gets drunk and violent. Yeosang does his best to protect Hongjoong, but it just ends up with him beaten"

Seonghwa was pissed when he heard this, shooting up and getting into Yunhos face. "And you knew? And you didn't do anything about it?!" He shouted. 

"Seonghwa! Calm down!" His mother scolded. 

Mingi quickly stepped in front of his boyfriend. "We've only known since the weekend. Yeosang promised to call if anything happened. And he did. But we weren't...quick enough" Mingi ended his explanation whilst looking down at Yeosangs mottled and bruised face, regret filling his insides. 

"...Sangie?" 

Damn, he was awake. 

"Sangie, need Sangie!" Hongjoong wiggled out of the warm hold, although he wished he could stay in it for longer. But he needed to make sure his brother was okay first. 

Making his way over on shaky, uncoordinated legs. He settled down beside Mr. Park as tears began to fall down his pale face. Reaching out his small hands and grasping at his brothers clothes, in hopes of waking him up. 

"Hey buddy, Sangie's just asleep, okay? He's going to be fine! But he's just tired now. Shall we get you cleaned up, my lovely?" Yunhos gentle voice came out onc he realised that Seonghwas father needed room to work. Gently settling his hand on the smallers shoulder to not startle him. 

Hongjoong glanced up and reached out for Yunho, quickly being lifted up and settled onto his hip. "Sangie sleepy?" 

"Yeah Joong-ah, Yeosang is sleepy" He quickly grabbed the butterfly bag he saw laying on the floor and left to go to one of the guest rooms to change the boy into something warmer and get him cleaned. 

That was the thing about Seonghwas house, his parents were their parents in a sense. They insisted that they make themselves at home and had always been loving and inviting to those who came around. The sort of parents everyone wished they had. 

Back in the lounge, Mr.Park had finished dressing the boys wounds, all they could do now is wait for the boy to wake up. 

"Get some sleep guys, we're going to need to sit and talk tomorrow" With that, everyone made their way to their room, or a spare room, Mingi carrying Yeosang to Seonghwas room upon his request. Hongjoong was tucked between Mingi and Yunho as they slept. The two having a protective hold over the older boy. 

When tomorrow came, everything would be different. 


	18. 𝓢𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓮𝓮𝓷

When the morning came, Seonghwas parents were already up. His mother had taken the day off to help the boy, whilst his father had to go in. But, he would make sure to mention what is happening to a specific team that worked under him, see if they can make a case out of it. The perks of working as a prosecutor. 

"Honey, wake up. I've already called the school, you all have the day off" A sweet voice arose Seonghwa from his slumber. He groaned as he rubbed at his eyes, trying to get the sleep out. However, paused when he felt another body in his bed. 

"Wha...?" 

Then the events of yesterday came flooding back through his mind. With eyes still closed, he blindly reached around for Yeosang, calling out his name. 

"He's right there sweetie, still sleeping"

He sighed once he saw thr bruised face of the younger, getting up and tucking him under the covers. 

"Wake up...please. If not for me, then for Hongjoong. He must be very confused Sang-ah" Leaning down to give him a peck on the forehead, he left, following his mother as they walked down stairs to begin breakfast. 

\-----

In the other room, the two pillars had begun to stir. The sunlight peaking through the curtain causing them to awaken. 

"Morning babe" Mingi grumbled out in his usual gravelly morning voice, shifting so he could see his lover better. 

Although, with the arm that has seemed to have clung to him in the night, it proved to be difficult. Yunho chuckled when he saw his boyfriends predicament. Not that he was in a better situation. The older seemed to have climbed half on top of his chest, snuggling down like a little kitten. 

"Gosh, how does Yeosang do this?" 

"...Sangie?" Oops.

The blue haired boy began to shift, eyes slowly opening up, then closing due to the harsh light suddenly abusing his doe eyes. 

"Shh, it's okay. It's Yunnie? Sangie is just getting some extra sleep" Yunho quickly shifted so that he was blocking the light from the boys view, detangling the limbs the were wrapped around him. 

Hongjoong whined as his boy was manipulated as he tried to sleep, snuggling into the warmth that was Mingi instead. 

"We should get up, I smell pancakes!" Yunho exclaimed, huffing when he saw the boy snuggle into his boyfriend instead of him. "Joongie! I thought I was your favourite!" He whined out, jokingly. 

"Yun wakes Joonie" He grumbled around the pacifer that they had found at the bottom of his bag the at night, thankfully. 

"Well I'm sorry mister, but we need to get up!" Yunho spoke, over exaggerating his words as a smile was stretched on his face. 

"Mhh...Mingi's the best, right? He doesn't wake anyone up. Mingi thinks we should stay in-" The tall man's teasing words were cut off by a small stomach growling out with hunger, causing them to look down at the boy who glanced up at them through one eye. 

"...rawr..."

The two chuckled at the cuteness, Mingi bringing his hands to the boys side to tickle him. 

"S..stop! Joonie...tickle!" He giggled out, writhing on the sheets as the hands tickled his sides relentlessly. 

"That's enough Mingi-ya, lets get him cleaned so we can go downstairs, yeah?" The giggles died down as he was pulled into Yunhos hold, Mingi getting up to collect the butterfly bag that was on the floor. 

"This?"

"Yeah, just bring it over" Hongjoong whined as he was striped of his clothes, not liking the way the cold air assaulted his sentive skin in the morning. As well as being like this in front of Mingi as well.

Mingi walked over, carrying the bag and grabbing out some clothes, as well as a diaper. "I take it these aren't for Yeosang" he chuckled. 

Yunho huffed, amused as he got to work, trying to ignore the, now, fading bruises and cuts on his body. "Can you see if there's any rash cream in there please, baby? This bloody rash hasn't gone since the last time I clean him" 

Mingi ruffled around the bag, dumping it all on the bed once he got frustrated. He quickly looked through everything, trying to find any cream like substances. 

"There's none"

Yunho sighed, expecting this. So, he just got the boy ready, making a mental note to buy some later on. A knock at the door startled the three, then it was opened wide as the person walked in. Seonghwa.

He looked up at them, eyes widening once he saw that he should have waited to be told he could enter. 

"S..sorry. Breakfast is done if you want some" He mumbled, looking down. Then up again. "You need some cream for that? My mum may have some. I'll go ask" 

With that, he quickly dashed away, closing the door in a hurry and made his way downstairs. Leaving the two pillars chuckling as they got ready as well. 

5 minutes later, another knock was sounded and a meek "Can I come in?" Was heard. 

"Yeah!" Mingi called out, watching the door open from his position on the bed. 

Seonghwa opened the door and closed it again. "Here, this is cream for his, urm...rashes" He handed it over, pausing. "Is he okay? Sang still hasn't woken up yet. Just make sure he doesn't freak out or something. Please" he pleaded. 

Yunho nodded as he got to work applying the rash cream, making the older whine and squirm at the coldness.

"Joonie no wike! Stop!" He whined, eyes becoming glossy. Mingi cooed, hand stroking the boys still greasy hair. "It'll be over in a second, buddy"

Yunho quickly did the tabs up and pulled the boys trousers up, lifting him up to a standing position. "Lets go, yeah?" The four made their way downstairs, egar to get some food in their empty bellies. 

Once they were in the kitchen, Hongjoong looked around, trying to spit his brother anywhere. But when his eyes landed on a unknown person, he quickly hid behind whoever was closest, grasping onto their t-shirt. It was Seonghwa. 

Yunho noticed his behaviour and quickly informed him of who it was. "Joongie buddy, thats just EDEN, Seonghwa-hyungs brother!" He kindly said. 

At hearing his name, EDEN looked over at the four, pancake stuffed into his mouth. 

"Heweo" he said, mouth still full of food, causing his mother to knock his head at the unpoliteness. He quickly swallowed and looked back, waving. "Hey, I'm EDEN. You must be Hongjoong, right?" 

He had been told when he got down in the morning about the predicament. Also being informed about Hongjoong, so he made sure to act accordingly. 

Hongjoong peeked around, small hand waving in his signature wave. They all quickly sat down, Yunho helping Hongjoong with his food. Everything was comfortable, homely and seemingly full of love that Hongjoong forgot what happened yesterday. Until a loud crash sounded from upstairs. He whimpered, turning his head into Mingis neck as Seonghwa and Yunho ran upstairs. 

_'Sangie...?_ '

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last update this week. The others will be up on Wednesday maybe? 
> 
> So, hope you enjoyed!!! 💙🦋


	19. 𝓔𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓮𝓮𝓷

' _Hyung_!'

Yeosang shot up, gasping for air as he shook away the nasty images that flooded his mind as he slept. Shaky hands blindly reaching out and ripping the covers off his bruised and tired form, and stumbling up and out of the bed. 

With a quick glance around whilst looking for the door, Yeosang failed to notice anything amiss with the room. So, he sat back down onto the bed, limbs folding as he did so. Rubbing his eyes, he took a deep breath, turning his body to look in the direction his hyungs bed should be.

When he didn't see it, it caused a fresh wave of panic to flush through him, causing him to look around the room. That was when he noticed that he wasn't in their shared room at home. 

Yeosang stood, blood rushing to his head causing him to become dizzy and even more disorientated. He stood and urged his feet to move, stumbling as he did so. 

Unfortunately, he wasn't able to catch his footing in time, as the next thing he knew, he was on the floor, landing with a loud bang. 

Footsteps sounded as people rushed upstairs, slamming the door open. The sound made him flinch as memories of what happened that previous day flashed through his mind. 

Seonghwa tried to touch the younger, but he flinched away as soon as he sensed the hand coming towards him. 

"Go away!" He shouted, arms coming up to cover his face. 

Seonghwa and Yunho were panicking, here they were in Seonghwas room, one of their best friends on the floor mid panic attack. 

"Shh, Sang. It's me, Yunho. You're safe. Were at Seonghwa hyungs right now. You're okay" Yunho soothed, approaching the boy as if he was a wounded, scared animal. 

Yeosang paused at hearing the voice of his best friend. Glancing up through small eyelashes and peeking through the long digits of his hand. There he was, his best friend. As well as his crush. Both looking down at him with worry. Taking a deep breath, he tried to regain control of his body.

"I'm o..okay" He stuttered out, voice weak and wet as tears fell. 

"Oh Sangie" Yunho breathed out, arms reaching for his best friend and encasing him in them as he fell into the embrace. "You're all okay now baby. You're safe with me and Hwa hyung" 

Seonghwa nodded along, not quite knowing what to say. He was terrified, watching the younger and his love panic and cry because of the fear his own father had created.

"Seonghwa.." Yeosang whined out, reaching his thin arm out wanting to include him in the hug. 

Seonghwa shuffled over, arms wrapping around Yeosangs thin shoulders as Yunho removed his. Only to wrap his much longer arms around the two. 

"Is hyung okay? Oh my God, please say he's okay. He ran, didn't he?" He rambled, only to have Seonghwa reassure him and calm him down. 

"Hongjoong's downstairs right now Sang, he's okay. Somehow he ran to the park outside mine. So he's all alright. Don't worry" He soothes.

Hearing this, Yeosang let himself calm down again as he melted into the embraces he was held in. 

"We're okay. We're gonna be okay" He mumbled, tears glistening in his eyes, looking like the whole galaxy was in there. 

Seonghwa swore he fell more in love with the younger than before, if that was possible. 

"Do you want to go downstairs or stay here for a little?" Yunho softly questioned, hand coming up to brush through Yeosangs greasy hair. "You and hyung are in need of a clean" He hummed, chuckling with amusement. 

Yeosang huffed and jokingly pushed his tall friends hand away, but held back onto it for comfort. 

"Go down? I wanna make sure hyung's okay" Bless his poor soul, always thinking about his brother and his safety more than his own well-being. 

They all got up, Yunho leading whilst Seonghwa held onto Yeosangs hand. The youngest there was walking on trmbling legs, his injuries from the night before not getting any better. But, it was only the next day, so they didn't expect anything different. 

"Hey baby. Sangie's here" Yeosang cooed, seeing his brother with his face in Mingis neck, scrunched with discomfort. He quickly let go of Seonghwa and walked towards Hongjoong with open arms.

When he heard his brothers voice, Hongjoong jumped straight off the tall chair and into the awaiting arms with a cry of "Sangie!"

"Aww, did you miss me that much? Sangie was only sleeping, little one" He chuckled, already forgetting about the situation that lead to them being here. 

Although, when he felt his shirt begin to dampen, he pulled away. He was yet to see his older brother cry ever since he was 5. 

"Joongie? Baby, Sangie's okay" He cooed, large hands wiping away the petite, stray tears. But the boy shook his head and dived back into the embrace. 

"Oh...poor babies" Seonghwas mum said, face showing sympathy as she watched on behind the island that separated them whilst she made breakfast. Watching them, she could see her own family in them. Her own memories being brought up by the display. "Boys...why don't you stay here? I'm sure Seonghwas father won't mind in the slightest. Plus, I think Seonghwa might also want you here" She directed this part at her son. 

Seonghwa quickly shot her a look, wide eyes telling her to 'stop'. But she's mum, so she has the right to embarrass her son. 

"Mrs.Park, we couldn't. I'm sorry that we already caused this much-" Yeosangs soft rambles were cut short by his own brother. 

"Joonie wan' stay!" He sobbed, glancing over to the warm woman that he had easily   
become attached to. She was warm and gave nice hugs! But not as nice as Sangies hug, cause nothing can beat a Sangie hug, or a Yunnie hug, or Mingi hug or even a Woowie hug. Hongjoong just got too many hugs a day. But he decided that she was definitely near the top of the list. 

"Joong, we can't baby" 

"Why not?"

Everyone turned to EDEN, surprised. When no one said anything, he continued. "Well, it's obvious mum wants more kids. Plus, she has taken a huge liking to Hongjoong. I have to admit, the kid's cute. And...Seonghwa has a massive c-" Seonghwa quickly ran over to his older brother and covered his mouth with his hand before he could go any further and spill his secret. 

"Stay?" He questioned, sending innocent eyes to Yeosang who couldn't look away. 

"Okay..." he said, still not looking away. He missed the cheers of the others, only focusing on the light blush that covered Seonghwas cheeks as they stared at each other. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Omg, it's happening. This is not a drill, it's happening. Calm down everyone, it's happening.


	20. 𝓝𝓲𝓷𝓮𝓽𝓮𝓮𝓷

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the wait and stuff. 🥺😔

For the rest of the day, the group were all just chilling in Seonghwas house, including his older brother EDEN. His mother, however, had gone food shopping as there were now more mouths to feed in the house. 

"Okay so, there's one spare room that mum and dad can turn into your room if you're okay with sharing" EDEN informed the new comers, keeping his tone light and face welcoming so he didn't make Yeosang worry any more than he already was. 

"Yeah, thats fine. Thank you so much, are you sure your family is-" 

"It's fine Yeo, don't worry. My father would agree anyway. So don't worry" Seonghwa said from his position on the sofa, glancing up at the younger instead of watching the blue haired boy that was sitting in front of him playing with his hands. 

"O..okay" he shyly stuttered back, blush covering his face as he looked at Seonghwa. 

"Well, we should get going now. If you need anything Sangie, just call. Okay?" Yunho said as he got up, smile on his face when he knew his friends were going to be okay. Mingi stood up as well, following him out after they had bid their goodbyes and hugged the others. 

"Yunnie bye?" Hongjoong asked, looking up at his brother with wide eyes. There was so much going on that it was confusing his mind, so many people coming and going, everything was going so fast. 

"Yeah baby, we're staying at Seonghwa hyungs, remember?" He asked, using his hand to comb through the hair, wincing when he felt the greasy mess that it was. "You need a bath smelly"

Hongjoong giggled. "Sangie smelly!" He poked his brother on the leg and turned around to talk to EDEN, who was more than happy to entertain the boy for a little, having missed his own little brother. 

"You guys can shower you know, help yourself to anything here. Make yourselves at home" Seonghwa said, coming up behind him after hearing what he said. 

Yeosang jumped and turned around, surprised at the older. "Jesus man, you scared me!" He breathed, hand on his chest. Although, being with just Seonghwa made him fell guilty all of a sudden. "Look...I'm sorry for punching you that day.."

"Stop, it was my fault. I'm so sorry. I had a younger brother who was a little like Hongjoong. So, he kind of made me angry" Yeosang listened intently, eyes showing sympathy. 

"Why did he make you angry, if you don't mind me asking"

"...he passes away 4 years ago. He had a...difficult time with many things; other health conditions, bullies the lot really. But one night, he just...came to us and gave us so many hugs without saying anything. The next morning, he didn't wake up. Was just gone...just like that" He whispered, eyes full of emotion and tears as he remembered back to the last day of seeing his brother alive. 

"I'm...so sorry Seonghwa, I didn't know, I shouldn't have asked. Sorry.."

"No, no. It's not your fault. If anything, it should have made me help you instead of being awful. I'm the one that should be sorry"

Seeing the older break down into tears, Yeosang quickly wrapped his arms around him and did what he does best, comforting others. He'd had enough experience with his brother to know how to get someone to calm down, even if they are not crying. 

"Sh, it's okay. It wasn't the best thing for you to do, but you're making up for it now, and we really appreciate it Hwa. Thank you so much" Yeosang praised, rubbing the older back comfortingly. 

They were interrupted when a sweet voice sounded around the house. "I'm back my loves!" Seonghwas mother was back, carrying a couple bags. Yeosang and Seonghwa quickly detached and went off to help, both boys offering their assistance to the woman. "Oh, thank you babies"

When she turned around, she was met with her eldest carrying the blueberry boy in his back, running around with him, shouting 'superman' every time they turned. 

"Be careful boys!" She called out, just watching the two interact with each other. It made her heart warm knowing that her boys had grown up to be such wonderful men. 

"Oh my god..." Yeosang trailed off, seeing his brother being thrown into the air. 

"He's fine dear, EDEN used to do this all the time with Jaeminnie" she said, still not looking away from them. "I think we made the right choice doing this. You guys staying here"

"But...wouldn't dad come looking for us?" 

"Honey, my husband is the Head prosecutor. He interacts with your father quite a lot. If there's any trouble, he can open a case against your father and take action against him. Don't worry, you guys are safe here" She reassured, glancing over at the boy she had taken in after she had finished talking, gasping when she saw the tears streaming down his face as he looked at her. 

"Sweetie, what's wrong? If it's something I said, let me know. Don't be afraid to speak up darling" She rushed to say. 

"Thank you so much. I'm just glad to get him out of the situation so he's safe" He sobbed, now being the one that needed comforting. 

"Oh baby" She said, wrapping her arms around his trembling frame as she embraced him, whispering to him. 

Seonghwa watched from the back of the kitchen where he had begun preparing food. He was happy. Happy that they were safe and happy that his mother is so fucking wonderful. 

He knew that together, they can be there for the boys. Hopefully for the rest of their lives. But...that was something to talk to him about later, it wasn't important as of yet. Even if every time he glanced at the brunette, his heat raced a mile. They were safe and sound. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Question, does anyone know how to get rid of 10 years worth of baby fever that is so bad it leaves you in bed all day and giving you loss of breath?...ples...😔 it hurts...


	21. **note**

Hey, it's me.

I just wanna say that I am putting this on hold until around Christmas time. It's just that I don't really know where I'm going with the story line at the minute. But, I will be writing other oneshots if anyones interested. And Harry potter ones if anyone enjoys that fandom and things. 

It's little space Draco. 

Anyway, thank you for reading so far and I hope that I'll see everyone back when I know where I'm going with this. 

Thank you and I'm sorry. 


	22. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂

Throughout the next two days, the two Kang brothers had settled down quite well. Hongjoong was still sleeping in the same bed as his brother, but other than that, they were all okay. Today, however, Mrs. Park had suggested a day out. Getting out and getting some fresh air would be rather beneficial to all due to them being cooped up all day. 

"Right boys, does everyone have everything? Joongie darling, come hold Hyunnie's hand, my darling," The woman had taken an, understandably, instant liking to the young boy. Hongjoong quickly waddled over, thumb lodged securely in his mouth and grabbed onto the slightly wrinkled but ever so graceful hand.

"We go?" He mumbled around the digit, not caring as spittle dribbled down his chin. The young boy was excited, and it showed in the way his eyes sparkled as he looked up at the woman, a wide smile stretching over his face. 

"Yes darling, only if that brother of yours gets up, along with the lazy bum that is my son," She said fondly, eyes glancing over the excited boys' face. "Did you brush your teeth, mister?"

Hongjoong looked up slowly, eyes going wider with innocence. "Mhm," He hummed. Over the short amount of time they had been in the house, Hongjoong had picked up many things. Still not being nearly halfway to being able to take care of himself, but that was what all these lovely people were here for now. He had always been a social butterfly, even if many didn't want to be around him, he still tried. After their father had made his re-appearance, his social skills had begun to decline. But, that was all brought to the attention of the Park parents and, with their help, was and still is improving. 

"Are you sure little one?," She teased, bringing her free hand over to tickle his side, eliciting a giggle and high pitched shriek out of him. "If I check, your teeth will be all squeaky clean now, would they?" Hyun-ah teased further. 

Hongjoong shook his head as his thumb came out of his mouth as he laughed loudly. "No, no, no!" 

"Just as I suspected," She played, guiding him over to the bathroom upstairs. "Let's get those teeth all clean then," Settling him in front of the sink, she grabbed the boys' toothbrush and got it prepared, wetting it and putting a decent amount of toothpaste over the bristles. "Here we go. You get those clean whilst I go rush those stinky boys, huh?"

She left the boy to brush and walked over to her sons' room, knocking on the door to respect his privacy. "Hwa, darling, we need to go. Are you nearly ready?" She called out. Once she didn't get a response, she took a deep breath and slowly opened the door, covering her eyes. 

"Hwa, we need to go," She said, still covering her eyes with her free hand. 

"S-sorry mum, me and Sang couldn't hear you..." Came the stuttered out reply from her youngest son. 

Uncovering her eyes, she saw that they were perched on his bed, headphones laying near their crossed legs, the phone still playing some animal video. 

"Boys, we've been waiting for ages for you to get your lazy arses out of bed!" She said, exasperated but not angry. How could she be angry looking at those kitten eyes staring back at her? 

"So sorry Mrs. Park-"

Hyun-ah cut off the other newest addition to her family. 

"It's alright dear, now come on, one little boy has been waiting very patiently," She told them with a smile, making her way out of the room and to the bathroom where Hongjoong was still brushing his teeth. 

"Oh, baby, you don't have to brush them that much, it would cause them to hurt!" Taking quick strides over, she took the brush out of his hold and told him to spit, hand coming up to rub against his back in a motherly way. "There we go, good boy!" 

Hongjoong looked up, eyes going wide. For a second, she thought she may have said the wrong thing as his eyes began to tear up. 

"Joongie goo' boy?" He questioned, hesitantly. But when she nodded in confirmation, he got closer than he already was to her and wrapped his small arms around her midsection, mumbling against her shoulder. Due to him lacking in height, he was light a real child, hugging his mother. 

"Darling, you're such a good boy. Don't ever let anyone tell you any different,"

The sweet moment was cut by her own son coming into the bathroom, looking for the two after they had gotten ready and made their way downstairs, only to find the woman who told them to hurry, not present. 

"Wow, I've been replaced," He said, eyes big as he pouted. He was joking, and his mother could tell, but since Hongjoong had difficulty reading these types of emotions and expressions, he quickly ran out of the motherly hold and into the solid chest of his younger brother's future lover. 

"Seongie no sad!" He called out, wrapping his arms around the tatted boy, being nice like his brother had taught him. 

"No, no, I'm okay Hongjoong. I was just joking" The taller chuckled, but wrapped the boy in a hug. "We were just wondering where you two had gotten to. Sangie and I were waiting for ages downstairs!" He told his mother, always being one for the dramatics. 

"Oh shush, let me have my moment," She told him, still feeling emotional due to the little sprout that had grown quite quickly into her life. The same one that was off running down the stairs at the mention of his brother. 

"Hongjoong, no running inside!" The call of said brother sounded around the house as a tiny boy came into view. 

"Let's go!" 

The four quickly dispersed out of the house and into the woman's car, buckling in and setting off. 

"Where are we going?" Yeosangs timid voice sounded out from his seat next to his brother in the back. He was still rather nervous about this whole ordeal, but it was much better than staying at home, with his father. So, he couldn't bring himself to complain. 

"Well... we're going to go get something rather special!" Hyun-ah hyped up from the driving seat. Next to her, Seonghwa rolled his eyes at his mother but watched her with a fond smile. He knew what they were doing, as the mother and son duo generally did this every year when the time came. 

"'now, 'now!" A gentle but excited face called out, pointing to the frosted snow that was gently falling, his face pressed to the cold window as his breath steamed up the window.

"Exactly. And what does that mean when there's snow?" Hyun-as asked, waiting for a response. When she got none, she quickly glanced at her son and looked back to the road, confusion on her face. "When there's snow, that means what is close?"

Yeosang, catching onto what she was on about, looked down, shame filling his features. He was never able to get anything for his hyung, so there was really no point in keeping the lies. Or the tradition really. It just reminded him of how lonely they both were in the big world. 

"Nun-no" Hongjoong said, peeling his face away from the frosted window and looking at the two in the front, really trying to think of what they could possibly be on about. 

"Santa comes sweetie. Do you know who Santa is?" She questioned, a pained smile on her face as she glanced between the boys in the rearview mirror. "Mum.." Seonghwa said, not really knowing what to do as the atmosphere became rather tense. 

"It's okay. I was just never able to get something for hyung, so he doesn't really know. Man, I'm a bad brother" Yeosang sighed, lowering his head in his hands. 

Hongjoong whined when he heard everyone talking but he was unable to understand what they were saying. Not knowing made him feel small, frustrated, and rather agitated. 

"Shh hyung, it's okay," His brother told him, grabbing onto the clenched fist and gave a tight smile to him. 

"Well, it seems as if Santa is gonna go all out on these adorable boys this year then," With her mind made up, she decided that she will sit down with her husband and decide on what to get for her new sons this Christmas. 

"No, you really don't need to. Inviting us into your home is enough, really. And were really both grateful," Yeosang piped up, face draining at the thought of burdening these wonderful people further. 

"Hun, it's okay. This is your new life, okay? Everything's going to get better from now, so why not start now? And it would be a pleasure to gift presents to you, two wonderful boys," She told him, making eye contact in the mirror and Yeosang realised that she wouldn't take no for an answer, so he just whispered a 'thank you' and turned back to his whining hyung. 

"Santa is a big fat man with a big beard that delivers presents to good boys and girls on Christmas. This year, Santa is going to be making a very special round to our house. Luckily, you're here this year!" Seonghwa told the whining boy, watching as he listened intently, cogs turning in his head. It was the best he could come up with, don't at him. 

"Santa? Fat man? Woo haf fat man!" Hongjoong's eyes widen as he thinks of his best friend's dad. Beside him, Yeosang snorts, knowing what his brother is going on about. 

"No hyung, not Wooyoung's dad. Santa lives in the North Pole with his elves. Have you heard of him before?" He questioned, generally wondering if his teacher had done lessons of colouring a picture of Santa. If so, he knew the small boy would let the story go over his head anyway. 

With a dismissal shake of his head, Hongjoong began wondering who on earth this Santa fat man is? 

"Tell you what sweetheart, Hyunnie will tell you all about Santa when we get home," She said, pulling into a parking space and getting out of the door, opening Hongjoong's door and unbuckling the boy and leading him out to where the others were. 

"Let's get a Christmas tree and we can decorate when we get back!"

It took half an hour to pick the tree, then an extra half to get it on the roof of the car. Once they had done that, Hongjoong was sleeping where he was standing, leaning on Seonghwa. 

He turned to Yeosang and his mother. "I'll get him in the car." He knew his mother wanted to talk to his friend, so he decided that this was the perfect opportunity to let them speak. Lifting the boy in his arms, he walked over, unlocking the car and settling him in gently. 

"Hwa-Hwa stay," 

"Alright, buddy. Damn, they were right, you really do worm your way into people's hearts" He was getting soft and he knew it. But, he couldn't find it in himself to care once the boy snuggled into his chest, paci that he had collected a second prior lodged into his mouth, bobbing up and down. 

Back with the other two, Hyun-ah wanted to make sure that the angel-like boy knew he was part of the family now. Which included having gifts on Christmas. 

"Hon, you should know by now that you two are like my new sons, you're both a part of this family whether you like it or not. It breaks my heart what happened to you two pure boys, so let me make up for all this, please," She begged, embracing the boy. 

"But- I don't," He sighed. "You don't have anything to make up for, so please don't feel pressured to be nice to us,"

"I know darling, but I want nothing more than to see you happy. The both of you. You guys out of everyone deserve that the most," 

"Thank you, I really don't know what would have happened if you guys weren't so accepting. We'd probably be dead by now," He chuckled, wiping at his face to dry the tears as she did the same thing. 

"Well, no more of those thoughts. Come one, let's get home so we can get started with one of the best Christmases of your life," She beamed, and together, they walked to the car, not saying anything as they saw the two boys asleep at the back. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! I will now be updating a story, any story, every day until Christmas! So, I hope you stay tuned for that and check out my other stories if you haven't already. 
> 
> Much Love, 
> 
> A xxxx


	23. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂-𝓞𝓷𝓮

When the four got home, they began the decorating process. True to mama Park's word, she is trying her best to make it the best Christmas the boys have ever experienced. All whilst making sure not to take away the memories the two had when they were in a happy family. The magical Christmas's they shared with their mother. 

However, Hongjoong had long since forgotten those times, so it was mainly Yeosang whom she was concerned for. The poor boy was rather reluctant to even join in with an already happy family in their traditions: which broke her heart. 

"Okay darlings, we'll start with the tree, okay? Then we'll do the others when appa is home," She told them, clapping her hands with glee. She looked around at the faces that were watching her intently, melting when she saw the joy in the two boys' faces. But her sons, Yong-Hwan had come home from work earlier, just looked as if they wanted to get on with it. 

"Boys, smile!" She told them, enlarging her eyes to get a message through to them without having to say anything. The two understood, straightening up and plastering big, slightly fake smiles on their faces. 

"Yong-Hwan-ah, can you grab the tree in for me? Seonghwa, go give him a hand, please?" Hyun-ah asked, pulling the two newcomers into the kitchen where she had packets of ingredients out. 

The brothers left, huffing as they went. 

"Now, there are two options; help set the tree or help Hyunnie make some cookies!" She cheered, directing the last part to Hongjoong due to knowing her son. Seonghwa would most likely want some alone time with Yeosang after everything that had happened during the day. 

"Cookie, cookie, cookie!" Hongjoong applauded, forgetting his indoor voice when he heard the word for the delicious, sugary treat. Yeosang quickly turned, giving Hongjoong a look that told him to 'calm down' to which he did. 

"Oh honey, it's okay: he can be as excited as he wants to here. It's okay," The woman cooed at Hongjoong, turning to Yeosang at the last reassurance, offering a reassuring smile. She just wanted the boys to be comfortable, treat this place as their new home as that's the most likely outcome of this mess. And she'll be ready to take them in a fight head-on, along with her husband. 

"Sorry," He replied, lowering his head in shame. "Uh..is it okay if I help with the tree?" Yeosang timidly asked, still not looking up.

Hyun-ah sighed, looking at the boy with sad eyes. "Darling, look up. Look at me, please," She waited until the boy slowly picked his head up, then continued. "You don't have to be sorry for anything. Not whilst you're here. I know taking care of your brother is second nature to you, but now, it's time to take care of yourself. We're all here now. Seonghwa, Yong-Hwan, Hyo-jong and I,"

Yeosang blinked, hearing the kind words, wincing as his eyes became heavy with the threat of tears. He searched her eyes, looking for any sign of being lied to. When he didn't, he bit his lips, looking down and swiping at his eyes. "Thank you," He whispered, looking back up.

The sweet moment was brought to an abrupt stop when they heard a loud curse coming from the sitting room. Hyun-ah rolled her eyes, knowing it was her bloody son dropping the tree. 

She quickly walked out, sighing at the sight of her oldest son underneath the tree whilst her youngest laughs and records. 

"Park Seonghwa," She sternly said, "What do you think you are doing?" No matter how much she tried to stay serious, she couldn't hide the way her lips pursed with amusement at the sight. Beside her, the two Kang brothers had dissolved into giggles of their own. 

"Guys, I'm..." A sigh was heard, "Why am I not surprised?" Everyone turned in the direction of the voice. 

"Hi, appa" Yong-Hwan said from underneath the tree. Hyo-Jong sighed, walking over and picking the tree up, getting thanks from his son, and looked around. "So... are there cookies?" 

"Cookie, cookie, cookie!" Hongjoong cheered, being reminded of what they were supposed to be doing. 

"I'll go wash up; then I'll be down to help" With that, papa Park left. Everyone quickly set off on their own jobs, the three boys getting the house decorated whilst mama Park taught Hongjoong how to make cookies. It was a mess, to say the least. 

When the house was warmly lit, tinsel hanging off anything it can and the tired boys were in bed, the two parents sat down and began discussing what they couldn't when the others were up. 

"What's new?" Hyun-ah asked her husband whilst sipping her glass of wine. 

Hyo-jong sighed, settling down beside his wife. "We've started the investigation secretly. But we're quickly digging up a whole lot of dirt on the bastard," He growled out, remembering some of the things he read today. 

"Well, that just means that it would go quicker, right?" She asked, hopeful. 

Hyo-Jong just hummed, thinking everything over. Just as he opened his mouth to respond, a whimper sounded out from the doorway leading into the room. 

The two turned, catching sight of a small frame clutching onto a stuffed animal as they shook slightly. 

"Oh baby, come over here," Once it became apparent who it was, she quickly settled her glass down and opened her arms. The boy wasted no time in running towards the woman and right into the safety of the motherly hold. 

"What's wrong, bud?" Hyo-Jong questioned, brushing a hand through the boy's slightly sweat damped hair. 

"Scary," A trembling voice answered.

The two were rather surprised at the boy coming to them instead of waking up Yeosang, but they quickly took it in stride, comforting the boy.

"Did you have a bad dream, baby?" Hyun-ah cooed, rubbing the trembling back to calm him. 

"Scary," He repeated in confirmation. Hyun-ah sent a look to her husband, having a silent conversation over the small boy's head. The man nodded, getting up and switching all the lights off, then reaching down to collect the still concerningly light boy. 

"You wanna sleep in with Hyunnie and Jongie tonight?" The woman questioned, receiving a hum. The three made their way upstairs, settling the boy on the bed, calming him when he let out a whine at being put down. 

"You go get ready, I'll stay here. Take it in turns," Hyo-Jong said, curling his arms around the boy as he snuggled into the hold. Hyun-ah nodded, making quick work of getting ready in the en-suite. When she came back, she switched with her husband and settled down for the night, letting the boy cuddle into her side. Then, when Hyo-Jong came back, he was also wrapped in the hug, both cuddling the tiny boy as he slept.


	24. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂-𝓣𝔀𝓸

When Christmas morning came, the boys, despite being older, all woke up at 5 in the morning. They all congregated to Seonghwa's room, waiting for the adults to wake up. 

  
Over the past couple of weeks leading up to Christmas, the boys had become rather close, seemingly like brothers. But everyone saw the pending relationship between Yeosang and Seonghwa, making bets as to when one would confess. 

  
Hongjoong yawned, snuggling into the closest person, which was Yong-Hwan. The older just looked down fondly, wrapping an arm around the small shoulders and bringing him in closer. 

  
Yeosang was nervous, his palms sweating as he thought of the day ahead. Don't get him wrong, he was excited and thankful for everything. But, it just felt wrong to him, taking gifts from this wonderful family. Even after everything they have already given. 

  
"Yeo, it will be okay. Relax," Seonghwa softly said, bringing his hand up to cover Yeosang's sweaty, trembling ones. 

  
"I know, it's just...ugh," He said, looking up into Seonghwa's eyes, "I feel bad, okay? This is something that I never did for Joong, and not to mention it's a family holiday. I feel like I'm intruding on you guys,"

  
"Yeo, please. It's a gift from us all, okay? We want nothing more than for you both to join us at this time. Please," He begged, hoping Yeosang would understand. 

  
The boy had been like this for the whole week leading up to Christmas. Unsure if he should be here, in a happy home for the Christmas holidays. He constantly came to the older in a state of anxiety due to these feelings. It hurt Seonghwa, it really did.

  
But today, today was a very vital day. He needed Yeosang to be feeling okay and not on the verge of an anxiety attack. 

  
"Okay, okay yeah. Thank you," The younger took a deep breath, calming his nerves, nodding at the older.

  
"There we go," Seonghwa praised.

  
From the other side of the room, the two were talking all about Santa, Yong-Hwan telling Hongjoong the story of Santa and his many elves. 

  
"Santa comes?" He asked, looking up at the older with wide eyes that oozed innocence.

  
"Yeah Joong, Santa comes on Christmas. Actually, he most likely has already arrived and delivered the presents," He replied, giving animated facial expressions to the boy, watching him giggle and gasp at the thought of Santa already delivering the presents. 

  
"Really? Where?" He questioned, eager to see if they actually exist. He's not had a Christmas that he remembers, so he's slightly doubtful about the whole ordeal. However, luckily for everyone else, he seemed to have latched onto the idea of Santa and doesn't think anything else could possibly deliver presents out of nowhere in the middle of the night. 

  
"When eomma and appa get up, we can go see" Seonghwa piped in, overhearing the conversation the two were having. 

  
Hongjoong squealed, looking at his brother, "Sangie, Santa come!" His smile was so wide and contagious that everyone in the room naturally started to smile with him. 

  
Their excitement was cut off by a knock at the door. "Boys, do you wanna come out now?" Came the voice of Hyo-Jong. He opened the door, dressed in his pyjamas and dressing gown, smiling at the boys all collected in the room. 

  
"Santa comes!" Hongjoong told him, running up to the man and wrapping his small arms around his middle. Luckily, the two parents had their children young, meaning he quite easily picked the boy up, laughing as he squealed. 

  
"Should we see if he did? There might be presents downstairs!" Hongjoong was practically vibrating with excitement as he was settled down. "First though, we need to wake up Hyunnie," The woman was awake, but he needed a quick word with the others.

  
Hongjoong nodded, making his way over to the bedroom, pausing at the open door and glancing at Hyo-Jong with a question on his face. To which he nodded, causing the small boy to disappear into the room. 

  
He turned to the others, "Everything okay boys?" 

  
"Yeah appa, just Yeosang being nervous again," Yong-Hwan light-heartedly teased, glancing over to the boy then getting up ready to leave. 

  
"Sang-ah, bud, I know you probably won't feel fully at ease, but I hope you know that you're a part of this family now. So, that means Christmas and presents as well," He reassured, smiling at the blushing boy. 

  
"T-thank you," Yeosang said, lowering his head at the stutter, but just shook it off as he too, was excited for Christmas. He made sure to settle the gifts he purchased for everyone under the tree.

  
"Let's go then, I don't know how long eomma can hold off that little bug," Hyo-Jong chuckled, walking across the hall to his room where he saw his wife and Hongjoong cuddling and talking, snug under the duvet. 

  
"Come, we'll see if Santa really did stop by," This got the two up, Hongjoong fully excited again. 

  
They made their way downstairs together, like a family.

  
Looking around, Hongjoong gasped, it seems Santa really did stop by, delivering a whole bunch of toys. 

  
"Shall we look for your pile, dear?" Hyun-ah questioned, holding onto the boy's hand and walking over to where they had set up the presents for him.

  
Yeosang, rather overwhelmed, let out a quiet "Oh my God" whilst looking around. Seonghwa looked at him, then smiled. "Welcome to Christmas at the Parks"

  
They sat down, opening the presents together. Hyo-Jong helping Hongjoong as Hyun-ah filmed everyone. By the end, Yeosang was nearing tears. 

  
"Thank you, thank you so much," He said, seeing everything they had gotten him, then at his brother's happy face. It wasn't about what he got, it was more of someone thinking of him whilst buying gifts for him. That hadn't really happened before, only with his friends. 

  
He stood, wrapping the two parents in hugs as he cried. "It's okay, sport," Hyo-Jong chuckled, hugging the boy. "Aw, sweetie, it's fine!"

  
At the other side of the room, Hongjoong was showing Seonghwa everything he got, the older one acting amazed at everything. 

  
"Tree presents now!" Yong-Hwan exclaimed, waiting for his father to dish out the gifts. The ones under there were from each other to each other. 

  
They quickly settled down, going through and opening them. Yeosang made sure to get presents for everyone from him and a second bunch from Hongjoong. He had a little money to spend, so he got what he could. But the family was still grateful, as they were things that he had a hand in creating. Hyun-ah may have cried a little, but no one needed to know. 

  
Now, came the part that Seonghwa was waiting for. He would ask Yeosang out.   
He quickly gathered his family, all collecting in the lounge. Hyun-ah, who knew where this was going, squealed as she sat, holding onto her husband's arm. 

  
"Yeosang-ah," He started, voice cracking slightly causing him to wince, "I've liked you for a long while, and I-I really like you. Seeing everything that you've gone through and watching you grow into someone more confident in themselves is so darn attractive. And, well...will you go out with me?" He nervously rambled to the blushing boy. The family waited at the edge of their seats, waiting for the answer.   
Yeosang let out a breath, twiddling his thumbs nervously as he thought of what just happened, thinking of his own feelings toward the older and gave an answer.

  
"I'd like that, yeah" Cheers erupted from around the room for the two.  
The rest of the day was full of joy and love as this new family all came together properly, as one for the first time. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everybody!  
> I hope you all enjoyed this chapter.  
> Stay safe and Merry Christmas (in a couple of days)  
> 💙🦋


	25. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂-𝓣𝓱𝓻𝓮𝓮

A couple of days after Christmas and after the confession, Yeosang and Seonghwa went on a date. It was the first time either of them was going on a proper date, so anxiety was surrounding them both. Seonghwa had many past partners, but they were just monthly hook-ups; therefore, he never took them out. 

"Mum, help me," Seonghwa whined whilst standing in the mirror, trying and failing to flatten his hair. On the sofa, both Hyun-ah and Hongjoong giggled whilst they watched. 

The two had become pretty inseparable, and Yeosang was now able to become a person for himself without the constant fear for Hongjoong on his shoulders. 

"Darling, it looks fine," She said back, really wanting to film this to send to her husband, and even Yeosang later. But her arms were a little occupied, curling around the giggling boy that was cuddled into her side. 

"Are you sure?" He asked, turning around, "Oh shush it you," There was no heat behind the words. Instead, he spoke more like how an older sibling would tease a younger one. 

Hongjoong just giggled more, wiggling out to try to get out of the hold. Once he successfully did, he ran up to the older and wrapped his arms around his middle. "Hwa pretty!" He said, big eyes shining up at the other male. 

Seonghwa smiled, bringing up a hand to ruffle the other's hair, "Thanks, kid," He said, quickly turning back to the mirror to check out his piercings and tattoos, making sure they were on display for everyone to see. Once he was satisfied, he sat down, nervously waiting for Yeosang to come down. 

Even though the two see each other every day, and it was their first date, they still wanted to dress up nicely. As a result of this, Yong-Hwan was upstairs, helping Yeosang get all dolled up and ready for a date. The older of the Park brothers was straight, but could quite easily be mistaken for being otherwise, with his stylish fashion sense and his flamboyant personality.

After 5 extra minutes of waiting, Yeosang turned the corner. Everyone paused as he shyly stepped through. Seonghwa was left with his mouth gaping as his eyes raked over the outfit he was wearing. It was a soft boy look, a nice beige jumper with skinny, ripped jeans. Then a pair of white vans on his feet. Yong-Hwan must have gone out shopping because he was one hundred per cent sure that Yeosang didn't own anything like this.

Also, there was a sprinkle of make-up donning his face, simple eyeshadow, his eyebrows were made darker, and he had a slight tint to his lips. 

"Aww, you guys are all grown up now," Hyun-ah complained, wiping a stray tear from her face as if she had watched them all grow up to the people they are today. 

"Mum, stop with the dramatics, please," Seonghwa begged, face-palming but never once taking his eyes off of Yeosang. 

"Seonghwa, let mum be dramatic. I mean, look at Yeosang, she must be really feeling it," Yong-Hwan piped up from behind Yeosang, looking like he wanted to cry as well.

"Oh, Lord give me strength," Seonghwa sighed out, standing up and effectively dragging Yeosang out of the room. 

"You look, wow," He said, stumbling over his words as he looked Yeosang in the eye. 

The younger blushed, looking away. "You look, well, you look hot," He said in reply to the compliment, blushing deeper as he braced himself before looking back up into the other's eyes, feeling happy seeing as he made the older flustered. 

"T-thank you. Should we get going now?" He asked, wanting to get out of the way of the prying eyes that were watching them from the door frame. He narrowed his eyes at them, wanting them to go away. They didn't, so the two boys did instead. They got into the taxi and set off for their first date. 

The two went to the arcade, where Seonghwa won Yeosang a teddy. To which he won Seonghwa a matching one. Then they went for hot chocolate to counteract the cold weather after Yeosang complained about it. Seonghwa would give him his own jacket, but it was a leather one, and that over or under the trench coat Yeosang was wearing would look rather odd. Not to mention that he was so cold that even his balls were shivering. But once they sat down to eat at a burger place, the two started talking seriously. 

"Yeosang, I know this is our first date and all, but would you consider being my boyfriend?" Seonghwa asked with hope in his eyes.

Yeosang paused as he bit into a chip. "Urm, I don't-look. Seonghwa. I've never done this before. The whole dating thing, so I don't really know what to do," He took a deep breath, "With everything that's going on with my dad and the uncertainty of waking up every day not knowing whether he's looking for us is a lot,"

Seonghwa looked down, not really knowing how to respond. He knew Yeosang was worried about everything, but he really had hoped for a different answer. Once Yeosang saw the way Seonghwa went in on himself, he immediately re-iterated what he said. 

"No, no, don't get the wrong idea, of course, I want to be your boyfriend. It's just that...the trust element of a relationship. You were an arse before, I haven't forgotten that. But also, I may be a lot to handle. I'm constantly scared that he will come around any corner at any given time. I'm sorry. I really like you and have done for a while, It's just that, I'm scared that you'll leave me when I need you the most," He admitted, looking up at Seonghwa who had tears dancing down his face. "Oh my, are you okay?" He quickly asked, offering the napkin to the other. 

"You really feel that way?" Seonghwa questioned, taking the napkin and drying his face, sighing when Yeosang offered a hesitant nod to his question. "Yeosang, I'll never leave you. Neither will my family, we'll be there whenever you need us, even if you decide to leave and make a life for yourself away from us, we'll always be one call away," He promised. 

"I like you Yeosang, as I've never liked anyone before. It wasn't all fun and games when I realised I was gay. You were actually the one that made me realise. And I know I was an arse, but please, please can you forgive me? I permit you to slap me if I ever act that way again, I will never leave you. Not even think of leaving you," He promised, now wiping Yeosang's tears. They were a couple of emotional boys, but they didn't care. 

"Okay...boyfriend," Yeosang said, a wide smile on his face as he continued eating. Seonghwa blushed, now realising that he had a boyfriend. 

\---

Once they got home, they were all giddy and heart-eyed, munching on the cookies that Hongjoong and Hyun-ah had made whilst they were out. They were going to be fine. Them being together also meant that both shared a tender kiss as the clock struck 12 on new years day, signifying a new year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry, I just realised I uploaded the same chapter as before, I'm sorry. 💙🦋


	26. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂-𝓕𝓸𝓾𝓻

Today was the day that the three would return to school. They would join everyone after their Winter break. Due to everything that had happened, the three managed to obtain 2 weeks off of school before the holidays, plus the time everyone else got for Christmas. 

Hyun-ah went around at 7 in the morning, softly waking each boy up. She started with her son, who was notorious for sleeping in. Usually, she would bast a horn or slam a heavy book to the floor, jolting him from his sleep. But recently, Yeosang had started to sleep in the room with him, so she didn't want to do anything that would cause any alarm for the boy. 

She smiled as she walked in, taking a glance at their cuddled up forms and went forward, lightly shaking Yeosang from his slumber. 

"Sang-ah, wake up, darling. You're back to school today," The boy groaned as he opened his eyes, yawning and lifting himself from the grip that Seonghwa had on him. She knew that he would wake up her son, so she didn't even bother. 

"Morning," He yawned as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. 

"Morning, honey. It's back to school today, so can you wake up Hwa for me?" Once she got a nod, she walked out of the room, making her way to the one next door. 

Hyun-ah slowly opened the door and crept inside. Due to Yeosang sleeping in Seonghwa's room, Hongjoong had seemed to have developed separation anxiety. It usually ended up with him sleepwalking into somebodies bed, or Yong-Hwan sleeping in Yeosang's old bed beside the small boy's bed. It was what he used to do with his younger brother, so it came rather naturally to him. As did the whole family's treatment of the boy, they all adored him. 

She smiled once she saw her eldest snoring away in the bed beside Hongjoong's as she made her way over. Perching on the side of the bed, she gently shook his shoulders, "Joong, wake up now. It's time for school,"

All she got in reply was grumbled as the boy suckled on his pacifier, he had started using it again after feeling alone in the night, sometimes even using it during the day once he was having a bad one. 

"I know darling, but you need to go. Who is it that you were telling me about? Wooyoung, was it? I bet he's missing you," She said, chuckling once she saw him sit up quickly and wrap himself around her. 

Behind her, the eldest son had woken up, watching the display with a fond smile as he thought back to the times that his mum would get depressed and sad whilst seeing anyone that resembled Jaemin in any way. The two boys moving in had helped their family a lot, even if it was for the benefit of their safety. 

"I can't carry you, darling," She said regretfully. The poor woman wasn't old nor weak, but she was only a couple of inches taller than the boy; so it would be awkward, especially on the stairs.

"I've got him, mum," Yong-Hwan said, getting up and peeling the boy off of his mother and into his arms. "He didn't sleep very well last night, he was upset, but wouldn't tell me why," He told her, which made sense given the boy's actions in the early morning. Usually, he was up by now, running around giggling or playing with his toys that he got for Christmas.

"Okay, hun. I'll go get breakfast ready, can you get him washed and dressed?" She requested, already getting up and walking to the door, going downstairs once her son said 'yes'.

5 minutes later, she was joined by the sleepy couple as they sat, all dressed and ready to go. But they were still half asleep as they munched on the pancakes they were given. 

Hyo-Jong laughed as he saw the two, getting his shoes on before he let. Not forgetting to bid everyone a 'goodbye'.

"Don't run!" They heard coming from the top of the stairs, followed by a bunch of giggles and laughs. It was Hongjoong, giggling around his pacifier as he ran away from the older as he tried to put a soft jumper on the boy. "Get back here!"

The others laughed, watching as he struggled to tackle the small boy and place the jumper over his head and feed his arms through the holes. 

"Come on now boys," Mama Park said, guiding them to the table. 

Once they were all fed, she gathered the bags, making sure everything was in them before herding them out of the door and down the driveway where they met with Yunho. 

"Yunnie!" Hongjoong squealed, running up to the tall male and jumping on him. Luckily, Yunho was already braced for the small frame to come crashing into him, so he caught him with ease. 

"Hey little man, how are you?" He questioned, smiling wide, "Did you have a good Christmas?" He set Hongjoong down, ruffling the boy's hair as he nodded. 

"That's good. How's Hwa been treating you guys?" He followed up, only slightly concerned. 

"Goo'!" He still had his pacifier in, so his words were slightly muffled by the object. Yunho nodded, opening the car door for the smaller to climb into, smiling when he heard the loud exclamation of 'Mingi!'.

Turning to his two friends' he said, "Hey guys, how's everything?"

"Good, it's been really good actually," Yeosang said, smiling up at his friend. "Thank you, by the way. For everything you did. Without you and Mingi, I would most likely be dead," Hearing this, Yunho wrapped the younger in his arms, reassuring him that it's okay and that he would do it a million times over. 

They got in the car, making a quick journey to school. They all walked with Yeosang as he dropped his older brother off at his class. It was a little hard for the boy, his anxiety running wild at leaving him alone, or without any of the Parks. 

But when Seonghwa sent a reassuring smile over to him, he took a deep breath and willed himself to say goodbye, leaving his brother to run over to Wooyoung and let himself be wrapped in a big hug by the younger. 

\---

The first few lessons went by quickly and rather okay. It wasn't until after lunch that Yeosang was getting panicky. The new phone he had, courtesy of the Parks, received a message from an unknown number. But it was clear to see who it was by the actual text sent. 

'Boy, I swear if you two don't come home in the next three days, there will be severe consequences'

It made Yeosang's stomach churn uncomfortably. He rushed out of his seat, ignoring all the calls of his name, even Seonghwa's. He ran and ran in blind fear, rushing to the colourful classroom filled with laughter and singing.

Yeosang pushed open the door with shaky hands, looking around hastily for his brother. Yet again, he ignored all calls. 

"Hongjoong, Kang Hongjoong. Come here," He commanded, walking up to the boy once he found him with Wooyoung. Grabbing him by the arm and yanking him up, safely holding him. 

Yeosang took a look around the room, seeing the panicked faces of the teachers. 

"We need to go," He told them, backing up into the corner, his breathing picking up as sweat ran down his face. He was having an anxiety attack. 

"Get them out," Mrs Shon said, referring to the other children. She knew Yeosang wouldn't do anything, but it would be scary for the kids to witness. 

Hongjoong looked up at his brother, then to Mrs Shon, then to the arms that were restricting his movements. Tears started to gather in his eyes as his lip trembled, looking up at the teacher with fear in his face. He didn't know what to do. 

Once all the children were out, she carefully approached the two boys, keeping her eyes on Yeosang but being aware of Hongjoong. 

"Yeosang, listen to me. You're in school. Nothing's going to happen here. Not when we're all here," She said.

But it did nothing to calm Yeosang's fear, he just tightened his grip on his brother as he saw the person in front of him as a threat. 

"Yeosang, you're scaring Hongjoong. You don't want that, now do you?" Still, it did nothing to stop him, even when his brother began to sob. He was so scared he didn't realise his bladder emptying itself where he stood. 

But Mrs Shon did, she was at a loss. There was no way to get to the boy. 

Luckily for her, the door opened, revealing a couple of boy's that must be Yeosang's age, ones she had frequently seen with the two brothers.

It was Seonghwa who approached, taking the same steps as the woman that tried before him. 

"Sang-ah," He paused, assessing the situation, wincing when his eyes landed on the terrified pair. "Sang-ah, calm down. It's me. You know me,"

Yeosang looked at him, "Seonghwa, Seonghwa help. Please, he's gonna kill us, please, he'll kill us," He began to sob, Mingi ran forward and snatched the small male out of his arms when he realised that the grip on the boy had lessened. 

"No Sangie, he won't. You're safe with us now, he won't get either of you. I promised you that, didn't I," He said, bringing the male into his arms and letting him sob his fear out. 

The other brother wasn't faring much better either, sobbing into Mingi's chest, trying to get as close as possible to the comfort. "Wan' mama, mama, mama, mama, mama," He rambled on, tears and snot sliding down his face. 

Mingi, taking pity on the boy, lifted him into his arms and onto his hip, bouncing him up and down as you would a child, gently shushing him, ignoring the wetness from the other's trousers. Yunho was there too, rubbing a hand up and down his back, looking worriedly over to his friend, but knowing he was in good hands. 

"You're okay, bud. You're okay," They reassured, "Who's 'mama'?" Yunho gently asked, a little concerned as to why the boy was asking for his dead mother. 

"Mama, mama, mama," Was all the boy gave, so they just continued on the comfort. 

At the other side of the room, Seonghwa was on the phone to his mother, asking for her to pick them up. To which she immediately agreed.

Turning back to Yeosang, he saw him staring in the direction of his older brother.

"I scared him, I did just what my father did. I scared him," He said quietly, face full of regret and sadness at the realisation.

"Baby, none of that. Yes, he's scared. But that was because you thought that you were both in trouble, it wasn't your fault. He'll be okay, he's Kang Hongjoong, he'll be fine," The older reassured, guiding the other out of the room along with his friends and new brother. 

There was the principle, looking over at them with a sympathetic look. "Let's get you guys outside. I'll have to stand with you while you wait, however," He said, walking over to the group and informing them. He was informed as soon as one of the teachers from the special education department came running to him. 

The group walked to the car park, waiting for Mrs Park to pull up. Hongjoong was still sobbing while Yeosang said nothing. It didn't even take 5 minutes for the woman to arrive, she was breaking a large number of speed limits, but she didn't care. Her boys were hurting. 

"Oh, babies," She said once she stepped out. She looked around at all the faces, making a mental note to ask Seonghwa later.

"Mama, mama, mama," A voice cried out, catching her attention. It made her pause, shocked. But she shook it off, making her way over to the boy and hugging him. 

"Calm down, darling," She soothed in a way only a mother could. "It's okay now, you're safe and sound, petal,"

She looked over to Yeosang, seeing the closed-off look on his face, already knowing that this was like going 5 steps back with the progress they had made with helping him open up. 

With a sigh, she got her boys in the car, bidding the others a goodbye before driving home. This was going to be a long night. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Christmas to those who celebrate!!!💙🦋 stay safe and well 💙💙💙


	27. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂-𝓕𝓲𝓿𝓮

By the time they arrived home, both boys' had calmed down. Which, made Hyun-ah's job much easier. Pulling up in front of the house, she took a deep breath to prepare herself, before turning to the boys' in her car. 

  
"Come on then, let's get inside and have a hot chocolate, yeah?" She gently coaxed, "Why don't you have a shower, sweetie?"   
Yeosang, who was still looking down in shame, nodded and stepped out of the car, the others following. "I'm sorry," He said.   
"Sang-ah, it's not your fault," Seonghwa reassured, rubbing a soft hand up and down Yeosang's arm in a reassuring manner.

Yeosang sighed but didn't say anything else, just made his way to the open door, following his brother and mother figure.   
"Go have a shower and I'll have some hot chocolate waiting for us whist mum gets Hongjoong sorted," Seonghwa said, not leaving any room for discussion as he wandered over to the kitchen to get the hot beverage sorted. 

Meanwhile, with Yeosang, he was silently crying as he stood under the water, letting it run down his aching body. 

  
"Why? Why is it always us? Why can't we have anything good?" He sobbed out, scrubbing his body quickly. Once he was all clean, he stepped out, looking at his reflection in the mirror. He looked pitiful. Lips trembling with held-in cries, tears covering his chocolate eyes like an opaque shield. His eyes were blotchy and red, a small, dull throb behind them, like a constant reminder that he was still on this God-forsaken planet. 

  
Letting out a trembling sigh, he reached down to gather the towel in his arms and dried himself off. He wrapped the towel securely around his body and walked out, his bare feet making contact with the cold, hard floor and wandered to his shared room with his boyfriend to get dressed into pyjamas. 

  
Hongjoong and Hyun-ah were cuddling downstairs. The woman had washed up the boy and got him into some comfortable clothes, then sat down on the sofa. She had the boy curled into her arms and was gently rocking him to sleep. It was one of the reasons that he was so upset; the shock made him tired. So, it didn't take him long to fall into a deep slumber. 

  
Hyun-ah gently let the boy down on the sofa, so he was laying down, then made her way to the kitchen where the other two boys were. 

  
"Let's talk, yeah?" She gently said, coming to sit down opposite the couple. Yeosang sighed as he looked into his cup, avoiding any and all eyes looking at him. 

  
"What happened, darling?" There was an air of uncomfortable silence as she waited for the boy to answer. 

  
"I-I just panicked, I don't know really," He said with a tremble to his voice, only now looking up into her eyes. Hyun-ah sighed as she saw the state of the boy. 

  
"Okay, when did it happen, can you remember?" She coaxed. 

"Urm...our father, he...um. He messaged me. Yeah," He said, lowering his head once again.

  
It was silent again; no one dared to even breathe loudly. 

  
"Oh hun, what did it say? If you don't mind me asking that is," 

  
He took his phone from the table and opened it, getting up the message application before handing it over to the woman. She took it and read over the message that was sent today and gasped, bringing her hand up to her mouth. 

  
"What? What does it say?" Seonghwa asked, leaning forward in anticipation and curiosity. 

  
"No, Hwa," She said, "Hunny, can I please keep this with me? So I can show Hyo-Jong?" 

  
Yeosang nodded, looking over at Seonghwa with a sad smile. "Why don't we just watch TV and relax, hmm?" Seonghwa said, getting two nods in reply. So, the trio moved to the sitting room and got comfy together and put on a movie, pushing the day's events to the back of their minds for later. Hyun-ah made sure that Hongjoong was back to cuddling with her as they sat down. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! It's been a while, sorry. But I won't be dragging this story on for too long as I've already got a new one planned and organised. I hope you enjoyed the minuscule chapter!! Stay safe huns!!


	28. 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂 𝓢𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷

After that incident, nothing much happened. Only the fact that Seonghwa's dad, Hyo-Jong, had managed to get a viable case against the poor boy's father and now they have a court date. Also, the boys are about to graduate from school, so it was mostly hectic at the Park house. Beside from Yong-Hwan who was watching them move around frantically to get prepared for the dreadful day. 

"Calm down. mum," He chuckled, glancing up from his phone to see his mother rushing around with everything. "It's gonna be okay, you know it will. Dad is on the case and he never loses,"

Hyun-ah paused, sighing and turning to her eldest. "I know, hun. It's just...yeah" She said sitting down and lowering her head in her hands as she sighed. 

Yong-Hwan switched his phone off and shifted over to his mum, wrapping an arm around her fragile shoulders, and made sure to give a tight, reassuring squeeze. "I know," He said, looking up to his father who walked around the door, pausing as he saw the distress on his beautiful wife. 

"Darling, are you ready? You too Yong-Hwan-ah?" He questioned, doing the buttons on his shirt cuffs and then diligently tied his tie after walking to the mirror that hung over their fireplace littered with family pictures, old and new.

Hyun-ah sighed, "Yeah," and pushed her hands to her knees and got up, putting on a face of steel and walked up to her beloved husband and smoothed out his shirt. "We - they can do this."

Upstairs, Yeosang and Seonghwa sat. The two boys were laying on the king-sized bed, complete with a myriad of pillows and soft toys. All brought for the comfort of the youngest Park. 

"You can do this. He can't get you once we step foot into that place," Seonghwa said, bringing a soft, gentle hand up to Yeosang's plush skin and cupping the face feebly. The pad of his thumb just grazing slightly to stroke the stress wrinkle out of the princely face of the younger.

"I can do it," Yeosang said, looking into the kind eyes of his lover, furrowing his eyebrow sightly as he thought the next 5 to 10 hours over and over. He sighed, glancing away, knocking the hand off his face. 

"I- Seonghwa..." He said, chin trembling minutely. The boy looked down, biting his lip forcefully as he tried to will the tears away. Letting out a wet, trembling breath, he squeezed his eyes shut, before looking back up at the patient face that is and always will be here for him. 

"Yeah, baby?" Seonghwa muttered, taking hold of the clammy hands, pulling them towards his chest. "You'll do perfectly. For me. For Hongjoong. And most importantly, for you. Everyone here is standing behind you in every decision you make. You do know that, right?"

Yeosang chuckled, looking into the eyes of the other again, "Yeah, I do. And I'm forever thankful for everything. I owe you guys so much. I-" He chuckled again, slightly trembling. "Sorry, I love you."

Seonghwa laughed, throwing his head back as his eyes disappeared into crescent shapes with joy. "I know, baby."

"Plus...I'm sorry for punching you. But also not, that's my baby you spoke badly about." Yeosang said, quickly taking it back after he remembered the reason why it happened.

"Yeah, I'm really sorry. The little stinker is actually a gem, I'm sorry from the bottom of my heart about that. Also, I think my mum has taken him over," He chuckled, trying to get the angry pout off his boyfriend's face. To which he succeeded. Yeosang knew Seonghwa felt bad and regretted talking bad about the boy, and it was shown a lot in the way that Seonghwa takes care of the kiddo as if he were his own younger brother. Obviously not replacing the memory of Jae-min, his late brother. 

"I know, I know," 

"Boys! We're going now!" A loud voice came from the bottom of the stairs alerting them. They both gulped, looking at each other, before smiling and making their way down hand in hand. 

"Sangie!" The cheerful voice of his brother rang out, making him dislodge himself from his boyfriend and over to his brother. 

"Hey, baby. You ready?" In truth, Hongjoong still didn't understand where nor why they were all leaving for somewhere But he had his family, paci and teddy with him, so he would be okay. 

"Sangie. Go?" He questioned, big dark eyes staring at his brother innocently as he tilted his head to the side cutely. 

"Yeah, we're going," They had tried to get Hongjoong into something a little more appropriate to the occasion clothes-wise, but the boy threw a tantrum, tears and all, and instead they went with black denim overalls with a striped shirt underneath. Everyone else was dressed to leave an impression on the people. But there was no dress code for what was about to take place, only for Hyo-Jong as he was the prosecutor. 

The car journey was uneventful, Hongjoong and Yong-Hwan fell asleep at the very back, leaning onto each other. Yeosang and Seonghwa were having a quiet conversation as were the parents in the front. 

As they pulled up to the big building, Yeosang glanced up, seeing the bright, warm light. He immediately felt ready for the fight, feeling supported in many ways. The warm sun felt like a safety blanket wrapped around him or a warm hug. That's when he knew his mother was with him, supporting him from where she watches over them. 

"I'm gonna do it, mum. For Hongjoong and I. I'm gonna do it," He whispered, a soft smile stretching on his face as he looked up. Seonghwa watched behind him, letting him have his little moment while watching him with a proud smile full of love. Once he was nudged by his father, he walked over to him and linked arms, walking towards the 18th century looking building. 

Behind them, the two parents were trying to wake up the two sleepyheads; succeeding after a 5-minute struggle. Now, they walked into the building. As a family. 

Hongjoong was tiredly suckling on his paci as he grasped his new mother figure's hand, walking with them all. The new place and all the people was unnerving to him, causing him to whimper and try to hide in the side of Hyun-ah. 

The woman noticed, wrapping an arm around his shoulders, "Oh, darling. It's okay, we're all here. Just ignore the other people, for now, hun." She said, stroking the back of his head carefully and calmingly. 

The boy looked up at her eyes, seeing the truth in them. He instantly fell reassured.

In the courtroom, everybody looked professional. It was exactly as it was in the movies, aside from the added dramatics. That's what threw Yeosang off in the beginning, making him feel uncomfortable with having to stand in front of these people. 

But he did it. 

"Calling victim Kang Yeosang up to the stand," The scary man on the top said, authority clouding his voice. Yeosang stood up on trembling legs and walked over. Hongjoong whined, reaching one arm towards his brother in confusion. 

Hyun-ah quickly comforted him, as well as Seonghwa. 

They quickly got on with the vow of truth and got down to business. "Kang Yeosang, is it true that your mother died when you were younger, leaving you and your brother in your father's care?" The question made him freeze.

_They were really getting straight to the point, weren't they?_

"Yeah, that right," He replied, gulping as he toyed with his hands in his lap. 

"Does your father provide the necessary provisions like food?" Came the follow-up question. 

Yeosang glanced at his dad in the front row, glaring at him with eyes that promised death. 

"No, sir. He didn't. He didn't even pay the bills, something that I was left to deal with from a young age, sir," He replied.

"Hmm, okay. And at this time, you were the one taking care of your brother? As well as going to school?"

"Yes, sir."

"And what happened when your father went to work?"

Yeosang paused, gulping nervously as he picked his fingers harder. "My father would stay at work or someone's place for weeks in a row. The times he did come home, he was drunk," His body was uncontrollably trembling with emotion as he began letting it all out. 

"And what happened when he got drunk, Mr Kang?"

"Urm...he would become violent to both Hongjoong and me." Suddenly, someone was walking towards the judge with a folder of paper. A glance to his right showed Yeosang exactly what was in that folder. Pictures of the injuries he sustained and the state of his house after the last incident that almost cost him his life. 

There was a pause as the evidence was looked over. 

"Okay, thank you, Mr Kang. Now if it is at all possible, we would like to speak to your brother,"

Now Yeosang didn't know what to do. His brother doesn't speak much and is also rather anxious even being here. 

"Urm...if it is necessary." 

With that, the brothers switched places. From where he was sat, Hongjoong could see his father. He was hidden from his sight when he sat with his new family, but now he was being shown to everyone. He began shaking, clasping the soft toy in his arms tightly whilst shaking his head side to side harshly. 

The judge saw this and called Yeosang back up, so he could accompany his brother, so he did. 

The lawyer got close to Hongjoong and stood in front of him so he couldn't see the crazed smirk of his father. 

"Hello, Hongjoong. I just need to ask you some questions. Okay? Yeosang will be with you the whole time as well."

Hongjoong looked up, not seeing any anger on the man's face, but not fully relaxing. He just wanted to be home or at school with Woo. Or bowling, he enjoyed that. 

"Does your father scare you, Hongjoong?"

Hongjoong looked up, watery big eyes crushing the heart of the lawyer. 

"Dadda scary! Gives ouchies to Joongie and Sangie!" He cried out, turning to bury himself in his brother's chest. "But mama nice. An' daddy." That last part made every member of the Park family pause, breath held as they felt warmth spread in their chests. 

"So, he hits you and Yeosang?"

Once he nodded, the judge slammed his gavel down as the man that's life was minutes away from ending, shouted out in protest, teeth bared. 

"That's enough! I've come to the conclusion..."

And that's how they got to where they are now. The Park's and the additions sitting around a booth in McDonald's, munching on their meals. 

Hongjoong squeals as he eats his chicken nuggets, bouncing in his seat with delight. The Park parents watching him and laughing, playing around with him. Yong-Hwan was poking Hongjoong's side as he bounced. Yeosang and Seonghwa were cuddling, eating and watching them all interact. 

"I'm so proud of you, Sang-ah," Seonghwa said, looking down at the smiling face of his beloved, tilting his head towards his face and stole a kiss. Yeosang blushed, laughing. 

"A new beginning. All thanks to your family. Thank you, Hwa." He said, eyes shining with life that he didn't have before. "I love you,"

Seonghwa leaned down again, pressing a small yet loving kiss to his plush lips. A gagging noise disrupted them, causing them to pull away. It was Yong-Hwan, who was smiling at them, phone pointed to them just having taken a picture of the pure moment. 

"Hyung!" Seonghwa whined, pouting. Yeosang laughed at the reaction of his boyfriend, looking around at the family that saved him, his new family.

He caught Hongjoong's eye. "I love you, Joong. My big brother."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that is it! Thank you so much for everyone that stuck around and read, commented such lovely words and for those who voted. Thank you everyone ❤❤ Thank you, thank you, thank you!! 😭😭
> 
> I may post just one more chapter later on, as like an epilogue or something. What do you guys think? I love you all!!
> 
> P.s. I'll get back to updating and starting my woosan book!! So keep an eye out for that! It won't drag on as long as this one, hopefully. But I hope you enjoy it 🥺🥺 
> 
> Until next time, I love you!!! 💙🦋


End file.
